US stocks rise as Treasury yields pull back

04 Oct, 2023

NEW YORK: Wall Street stocks climbed early Wednesday after a weak US private employment report was seen as easing pressure on the Federal Reserve to lift interest rates further.

The 10-year US Treasury note, which hit a 16-year peak on Tuesday, retreated as payroll firm ADP reported the US private sector added only 89,000 jobs last month, well below expectations.

“We’re entering a situation now where any negative economic data or soft economic data will likely be viewed as bullish for stocks,” said Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investments.

US stocks open lower as key Treasury yield hits 16-year peak

“Because that alleviates pressure from the Fed to keep raising rates aggressively,” he added.

About 10 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.2 percent at 33,060.23.

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent to 4,246.43, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 0.7 percent to 13,156.57.

Markets also digested the latest political curveball from Washington, where hardline Republican lawmakers ousted Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the House.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare noted that McCarthy was beaten by a wing of the Republican party that opposed his cooperation with Democrats last weekend to avert a government shutdown through a short-term budget extension.

“From a market standpoint, that understanding is creating added uncertainty about the ability to broker a deal to avert a shutdown after November 17 when the current continuing resolution expires,” O’Hare wrote.

He added that the issue could become a bigger hurdle “down the road.”

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