Stocks Fall on Strong August Jobs Report

The stock market fell slightly on Friday after the strong August jobs report came in. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.3%, the S&P 500 decreased by 0.4%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.5%.

Economists were expecting a payroll addition of 53,000 in August, but instead received 162,000 new jobs, the strongest month since March. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%, while average hourly earnings rose 3.1% from a year earlier, slightly above expectations.

The strong job market data sparked concerns about inflation and led to increased odds of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in September. Short-term Treasury yields rose sharply on the news, as traders priced in roughly 60% odds of a quarter-point increase at the Fed's meeting on Sept. 15-16.

The Dow stocks were relatively stable, with none moving more than 2% in either direction. Apple weighed heavily on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite indexes due to issues with its upcoming range of iPhone and MacBook devices. Meanwhile, Micron Technology's plan to double the production of its AI-friendly High Bandwidth Memory in 2027 sent memory stocks soaring.