— The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed in the red last Friday. The release of stronger-than-expected U.S. employment data could encourage the Federal Reserve (Fed) to raise interest rates further.
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 32,899.70, down 348.58, or -1.05%.
- The S&P 500 closed at 4,108.54, down 68.28, or -1.63%.
- The NASDAQ closed at 12,012.73, down 304.16, or -2.47%.
— The crude oil contract closed positive. OPEC+ increased oil production targets more than expected, but oil supply may be tight. Oil demand tends to increase in China after the start of easing COVID-19 control measures.
- WTI crude futures were up $2, or 1.7 percent, at $118.87 a barrel.
- BRENT crude futures were up $2.11, or 1.8%, at $119.72 a barrel.
— Gold contracts were negative, pressured by the stronger U.S. dollar. This results in gold contracts becoming more expensive for investors holding other currencies.
- The gold contract was down $21.2, or 1.13%, at $1,850.2 an ounce. This was the biggest single-day drop in about three weeks.
- Silver was down 36.7 cents, or 1.65%, to close at $21.908 an ounce.
- The platinum contract was down $12, or 1.17 percent, at $1,016.4 an ounce.
- The palladium contract was down $61.60, or 3%, at $1,985.90 an ounce.
— The U.S. dollar strengthened against the other major currencies in the baskets, driven by the release of U.S. labor market data that exceeded expectations.
- The dollar index against the six major currencies in a basket of currencies rose 0.31% to 102.1390.
- The U.S. dollar strengthened against the yen at 130.83 yen from 129.86 yen.
- The dollar strengthened against the Swiss franc at 0.9624 francs from 0.9581 francs.
- The dollar was higher against the Canadian dollar at 1.2584 Canadian dollar from 1.2577 Canadian dollar.
- The euro was lower against the dollar at $1.0724 from $1.0743.
- The pound fell to $1.2502 from $1.2568.
- The Australian dollar fell to $0.7214 from $0.7256.