Dow fell 174 (off early lows), decliners over advancers 3-2 & NAZ pulled back 187. The MLP index lost 1 to the 106s & the REIT index was fractionally higher in the 354s, Junk bond funds were weak & Treasuries edged lower. Oil dropped 1+ to the 37s & gold was off 2 to 1913.
| CL=F | Crude Oil | 37.55 | -1.15 | -1.3% |
| GC=F | Gold | 1,910.00 | -6.30 | -3.0% |
The US economy added 661K jobs in Sep, suggesting the labor market's recovery from the coronavirus pandemic is beginning to plateau amid fading gov relief money & a gradually growing virus caseload. The Labor Dept's payroll report is the last before the presidential election, for which the coronavirus pandemic & the subsequent economic recession have been a major issue. It showed the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to 7.9% from 8.4%. The forecast called for the report to show that unemployment dropped to 8.2% & the economy added 850K jobs. It's well below the combined 7.5M jobs added in May & Jun before hiring cooled in Jul, with the growth of 1.9M positions, & in Aug, with 1.4M created. There are still roughly 10.7M more out-of-work Americans than there were in Feb before the pandemic hit.
Unemployment rate drops as US economy adds 661k jobs in September
Pres Trump was experiencing “mild symptoms” after testing positive for the coronavirus, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows confirmed. The news came hours after the pres disclosed that he & first lady Melania Trump had tested positive. Meadows said today that Trump is “in good spirits.” The White House is discussing whether the pres will address the country in some manner about his diagnosis. Trump,
who is 74 years old & overweight, is in categories of people
considered at higher risk for adverse effects from the disease. VP Mike Pence & his wife each tested negative for the virus, the White House. White
House physician Dr Sean Conley said that he
expects Trump to “continue carrying out his duties without disruption
while recovering.” A
White House official said that some staffers who were in contact
with the pres yesterday are working from home on today. “As
this virus continues to go on, other people in the White House will
certainly have a positive test result, and we’ve got the mitigation plan
in place for that,” Meadows said. Trump said in
his AM tweet today that he & his wife were beginning their
quarantine process after the positive test. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines recommend people who believe they may have been exposed to the virus should quarantine for 14 days.
Trump experiencing 'mild symptoms' after coronavirus diagnosis
Americans grew more optimistic toward the end of Sep as consumer sentiment reached a 6-month, reflecting more confidence in the US economy after a summer lull. The final consumer sentiment survey in Sep climbed to 80.4 from a preliminary reading of 78.9, the Univ of Mich said. It was also up from Aug's 74.1 score. The index now sits at the highest level since the pandemic erupted in Mar, mirroring the results of other household surveys. Earlier this week the Conference Board said its consumer confidence index also shot up to a pandemic high. A decline in coronavirus cases earlier in the month helped lift the optimism of consumers, as did the creation of more jobs. The US regained 661K jobs in Sep & 877K in the private sector, the gov reported. An index that measures current conditions rose to 87.8 from a preliminary 87.5 reading earlier in the month. Consumers also felt somewhat better about the rest of the year. An index that measures expectations for the next 6 months edged up to 75.6 from a preliminary 73.3 reading & 68.5 in Aug. “While consumers have anticipated gains in the national economy ever since the April shutdown, the September survey recorded a significant increase in the proportion that expected a reestablishment of good times financially in the overall economy,” said Richard Curtin, the chief economist of the survey. Yet confidence was greater among wealthier Americans than other households, highlighting the wide disparity in who’s been hurt most by the coronavirus. Many workers in lower-paying jobs in hotels, restaurants, retail stores & other service-oriented businesses have suffered higher levels of unemployment. “The data indicate that lower-income households face continued income and job losses compared with the modest gains expected by upper-income households,” Curtin added. Higher confidence has long been associated with stronger economic growth & faster hiring. Throughout the pandemic consumer confidence has been shaped by the ebb & flow of coronavirus cases & the steady return of people to work. As long as the virus remains under control, the economy is likely to continue to recover. But if the virus starts spread faster again or rehiring slows, confidence is bound to suffer another blow
Consumer sentiment improves in late September and hits six-month high
In overnight trading stocks fell on the initial report about Trump's diagnosis. Today markets are absorbing the news & also learned about the monthly jobs report & consumer confidence improvement shown above. Trading will likely be gloomy for the rest of trading today.Dow Jones Industrials
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