Stocks on Wall Street dropped for the seventh day, foiling a rally just before the close in a light trading session ahead of the Independence Day holiday weekend.The main focus was on the June non-farm payroll figures, which largely confirmed fears of a s
Stocks on Wall Street dropped for the seventh day, foiling a rally just before the close in a light trading session ahead of the Independence Day holiday weekend.
The main focus was on the June non-farm payroll figures, which largely confirmed fears of a second-half slowdown in the economy.
The US government reported a fall of 125,000, but that was distorted by a 225,000-drop in temporary Census workers. The more closely watched number of private-sector jobs rose 83,000. The unemployment rate dropped to 9.5% from 9.7% in May.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted its longest losing streak since the eight-day period that ended on October 10, 2008. The Dow closed 50.13 points, or 0.5%, to 9682.40, a 5% drop for the week.
Leading the Dow's declines, GE slid 2.1%. Industrial components weakened after a drop in factory orders. Caterpillar dropped 1.7%, 3M slid 1.7% and Boeing fell 1.2%.
Walt Disney weakened 1.7% after it bought the maker of the popular Tap Tap Revenge game for Apple mobile devices like the iPhone.
The Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.5% to 2091.79 and the S&P 500 index also shed 0.5% to 1022.54, a drop of 5.4% this week.
Other markets: Europe, Asia mixed
European shares ended the week on a mixed note, as a rebound by carmakers and miners was offset by weakness in the healthcare and technology sectors.
The Stoxx Europe 600 index ended fractionally lower at 237.27, its fourth consecutive loss. The index dropped 4.5% for the week, leaving it at its lowest close since May 25.
The UK FTSE 100 index rose 0.7% to 4838.09, the German DAX index fell 0.4% to 5834.15 and the French CAC-40 index advanced 0.3% to 3348.37.
Asian markets ended mixed in choppy trade.
Australian shares ended flat, offsetting weakness in energy producers as oil prices dropped and after the government announced a compromise to its mining tax proposals.
The S&P/ASX 200 finished little changed at 4238.73 after declining in the previous eight sessions. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average climbed 0.1% to 9203.71, snapping a five-session losing streak.
China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.4% to 2382.90, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 1.1% to 19,905.32, Korea's Kospi fell 0.9% to 1671.82, Taiwan's Taiex advanced 1.1% to 7330.74 and India's Sensex fell 0.3% to 17,460.95.
Commodities: Oil down, gold up
Oil futures were weaker for a fifth straight day, shedding early gains and falling to the lowest level since June 8.
Light, sweet crude for August delivery fell $US1.06, or 1.5%, to $US71.89 a barrel in New York, trading in a range of $73.38 to $71.70. August North Sea Brent crude on the ICE futures exchange traded 71USc, or 1%, lower at $US71.63 a barrel.
Gold futures turned slightly positive after the US jobs report but the metal remains on the defensive after a massive slide on Thursday.
The most-actively traded contract, for August delivery, was up 50USc at $US1207.20 an ounce in New York.
Currencies: Dollar down, euro up
The dollar fell against the euro after US payroll figures showed the economy shed jobs for the first time this year.
The euro ticked over the psychologically key $US1.26 level, while the dollar traded near its lowest level since May against a trade-weighted basket of its competitors.
The euro was at $US1.2591 from $US1.2519 late on Thursday. The dollar was at ¥87.71 from ¥87.59, while the euro was at ¥110.42 from ¥109.58. The UK pound was at $US1.5180 from $US1.5183.
