By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks closed slightly lower on
Friday, capping weekly gains, as concerns over conflict in Ukraine
outweighed an upbeat jobs report.
A surprisingly stronger-than-expected jobs report lifted both
the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average to record
levels, but rally proved to be short-lived.
The S&P 500 (SPX) ended the day 2.54 points, or 0.1%, lower
at 1,881.14 and gained 1% over the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) lost 45.98 points, or
0.3% to 16,512.89, but still recorded a gain of 0.9% over the past
week.
The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) finished the day 3.55 points, or
0.1%, lower at 4,123.90 and gained 1.2% over the week.
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"The headline number was much better than expected, confirming
that a harsh winter slowed the economy down. But in the end, the
solid gains in jobs growth did not matter, as an improvement was
already priced in," said Kate Warne, investment strategist at
Edward Jones.
The U.S. generated 288,000 jobs in April--the biggest increase
in more than two years--and the unemployment rate fell to 6.3%, a
strong performance that suggests the economy is accelerating after
tepid first-quarter growth. The unemployment rate is the lowest
since September 2008. However, the details of the report puzzled
investors. The labor participation rate dropped sharply, while wage
growth was flat, suggesting a bigger slack in the labor market.
Talking about market reaction in the afternoon, Anthony Valeri,
investment strategist for LPL Financial, said traders wouldn't want
to hold on to long positions going into the weekend after
disturbing headlines of violence in Ukraine between pro-Ukrainian
and pro-Russian factions.
LinkedIn plummets as earnings disappoint
On the corporate side, shares of LinkedIn Corp. (LNKD) dropped
8.4% after the online networking service said late Thursday it
swung to a loss of $13.32 million.
Ares Management (ARES) slid 2.1% to $18.60 on its first day of
trading. The alternative lender priced its initial public offering
of 11.4 million shares at $19 a common share. Ares plans to use the
proceeds of the IPO to buy newly issued Ares Operating Group Units,
to repay debt and to finance growth projects, it said.
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) slipped 2.4% after reports German
drug maker Bayer AG is in exclusive talks to buy Merck's
consumer-health care unit for $14 billion.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (WYNN) shares rose 7.3%. after the company
said late Thursday its first-quarter adjusted earnings rose to
$2.32 a share, above analyst expectations.
Akamai Technologies Inc. (AKAM) initially rose after the
company's first-quarter earnings beat expectations, but reversed
gains and closed 2.5%.
U.S.-listed shares of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS)
jumped 7.9% after the bank said Friday its first-quarter profit
rose, as it attempts to reduce costs by focusing on its U.K.
operations.
InvenSense Inc. (INVN) shares dropped 4.7% after the company
said late Thursday it swung to a fiscal fourth-quarter loss.
In other financial markets, European stock markets closed lower,
while Asian bourses closed mixed.
Concerns about Ukraine reversed price moves in currency, fixed
income and commodity markets.
The dollar(DXY) gave up its gains against the yen. Treasury
prices swung mostly higher Friday as tensions in Ukraine mounted,
recovering from sharp losses after a jobs report that indicated a
bounceback in hiring. Gold(GCM4) prices settled higher, scoring
their first gain in five session. Oil prices (CLM4) also settled
higher, logging their first gains in three session.
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