The New York Stock Exchange [Yonhap]
The New York Stock Exchange [Yonhap]

Wall Street's three major indexes opened higher Friday as investors digested a weaker-than-expected September nonfarm payrolls report.

As of 9:38 a.m. local time Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 353.48 points, or 0.69 percent, at 51,280.04. The S&P 500 rose 67.61 points, or 0.88 percent, to 7,734.06, while the NASDAQ Composite gained 347.31 points, or 1.29 percent, to 27,218.91.

The softer-than-expected September nonfarm payrolls data tempered expectations for further interest rate hikes, lifting investor sentiment. According to the US Department of Labor, nonfarm payrolls grew by 29,000 in September from the previous month — more than 100,000 below August's revised figure of 133,000 and well short of the market consensus of 90,000.

According to CME FedWatch, fed funds futures markets placed the probability of the Federal Reserve raising its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points at the October FOMC meeting at 18.3 percent, with the odds of a hold at 81.7 percent. The previous day, the probability of a hike stood at 24.4 percent, with a hold at 75.5 percent.

Falling oil prices also supported the equity rally. Reports that the EU was discussing releasing diesel reserves to cool oil prices under US pressure weighed on crude, as did reports that crude throughput on Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline, which had been attacked, had been restored to more than 80 percent of capacity.

A revival in risk appetite drove gains in technology stocks. Tesla climbed 3.96 percent, while Intel and AMD rose 3.20 percent and 3.11 percent, respectively.

Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, said the day's data "calls for patience, not panic," adding that for the Fed to justify another rate hike this year, it would need to see inflation reaccelerating — not merely continued economic resilience.

Nearly all sectors advanced, with energy and healthcare the only exceptions.

Nike fell 5.89 percent after the sportswear brand forecast a sharp drop in annual sales due to weakness in China and announced a restructuring of its global business divisions along with layoffs.

Moderna gained 1.37 percent after NASDAQ announced that the company would replace Warner Bros. Discovery in the NASDAQ 100 index starting Oct. 9.

Credit scoring company Fair Isaac fell 5.10 percent after reports that the Federal Housing Finance Agency plans to ease mortgage credit data requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

European markets also rose across the board. The Euro Stoxx 50 was trading up 1.06 percent at 6,241.18, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 gained 1.16 percent and 0.73 percent, respectively. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.35 percent.

International oil prices fell. The front-month November 2026 West Texas Intermediate crude contract was down 4.03 percent from the previous session at $89.13 per barrel.


husn7@heraldcorp.com