02 September, 2017
Headline jobs growth slowed more than expected in August, the data showed after two straight months of strong gains, while average hourly earnings rose three cents, or 0.1 per cent, versus forecasts of 0.2 per cent.
But it could make the central bank think more carefully about whether it wants to raise interest rates for a third time this year. The dollar climbed and Treasury yields rose.
Eight of the 11 major sectors were higher, with the consumer discretionary index's 0.37 per cent rise leading the advancers.
Fiat Chrysler gained 4.8 percent as automakers said their sales improved in August. Having dipped immediately after the jobs numbers, they also perked up and the main S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq markets all looked set to open around 0.3 per cent higher. "If earnings are to have picked up along with employment, we will see a straightforward reaction with USA stocks and yields rising and the dollar being bought", said Junichi Ishikawa, senior FX strategist at IG Securities in Tokyo.
"The data kind of continued to show this Goldilocks-type situation, which the market tends to like", Carlson said: "It's not too hot, it's not too cold".
At the close of a quiet week just before the long holiday weekend, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average and broader S&P 500 had both gained 0.2 per cent to finish at 21,987.56 and 2,476.55, respectively.
European shares started September on a firm footing after three months of losses, as financials rose.
Euro zone stocks had been at risk of their second red week in a row but a 0.8 per cent rise looked to have dug them out of trouble.
Pedestrians leave and enter the London Stock Exchange in London, Britain August 15, 2017.
The US economy added 156,000 jobs in August, below the 180,000 expected by economists polled by Reuters.
The Institute for Supply Management said its index for factory activity soared to 58.8 in August, the highest since April 2011.
FILE PHOTO - A woman holding an umbrella walks past an electronic board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 outside a brokerage in Tokyo, July 8, 2015.
The dollar index.DXY, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was up 0.18 percent to 92.836.
The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey is keeping large refineries offline and pushing gasoline prices higher, but petroleum stocks were mixed.
The Nasdaq Composite was up 21.32 points, or 0.33 percent, at 6,389.63.
US stocks are higher for the sixth consecutive day as investors are comforted rather than troubled by a slightly weak jobs report.