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NEW YORK – U.S. stocks are slipping Friday as a big loss from Apple drags technology companies lower and an increase in interest rates hurts high-dividend companies. The world’s largest technology company forecast weak revenue and said it will stop disclosing quarterly iPhone sales. Apple is on track for its biggest loss since January 2014.
Stocks had surged over the previous three days and are still on pace for a big weekly gain after skidding in October to their worst monthly loss in seven years.
The federal government said employers added 250,000 jobs in October, far more than analysts expected. Hourly pay jumped 3.1 per cent, the most since the beginning of 2009.
KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index slid 25 points, or 0.9 per cent, to 2,715 as of 3:05 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 189 points, or 0.8 per cent, to 25,191.
The Nasdaq composite, which has a high concentration of technology companies, lost 97 points, or 1.3 per cent, to 7,336. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks slipped 1 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 1,543.
The S&P 500 is up 2.4 per cent this week after strong gains the last three days, but would have to rally another 7.9 per cent to match the all-time high it reached on Sept. 20.
JOBS, JOBS, JOBS: The Department of Labor said U.S. employers continued to add jobs at a quick clip in October, with no sign that hiring was going to slow down. The proportion of Americans with jobs is at its highest level since January 2009, and the monthly increase in pay was also the largest since then. Along with high consumer confidence, those are all good signs for economic growth and consumer spending in the months to come.
Bond prices dropped, sending yields sharply higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note jumped to 3.22 per cent, from 3.14 per cent. A jump in interest rates last month started the market’s downturn, but investors on Friday didn’t seem as worried about the increase.
“It clearly was a good report,” said David Lefkowitz, senior equity strategist Americas at UBS Global Wealth Management.
The wage number, while high, was about what investors were expecting, Lefkowitz said. That’s important because investors are still sensitive to signs that inflation could flare up, forcing the Federal Reserve to be more aggressive in raising rates. If inflation grows moderately, as it appeared to in October, that’s not as likely.
APPLE CORED: Apple’s sales in its latest quarter and its estimates for the holiday season both disappointed experts. The tech giant also surprised investors by saying it will no longer disclose the number of iPhones it sells each quarter. Apple was unique among big smartphone makers in saying how many phones it sold and what the average price was. Apple gets most of its revenue from iPhone sales and lately it’s boosted its profits by selling higher-priced models.
The unexpected change raised suspicions that Apple might be trying to mask a downturn in the phone’s popularity. The company says the quarterly numbers and prices didn’t necessarily tell investors how strong its business has been.
Apple sagged 7.2 per cent to $206.32. Chipmakers also fell. Qorvo lost 4.8 per cent to $74.72 and Broadcom fell 3.8 per cent to $221.04.
TRADE UPDATE: The governments of the U.S. and China both said they were making some progress in trade talks. It’s been months since the two sides made any visible progress and fears that the dispute was getting worse contributed to the big losses for global stocks in October. Chinese state media also said President Xi Jingping promised tax cuts and other help to China’s entrepreneurs in a renewed effort to revive state-dominated economy.
Germany’s DAX rose 0.4 per cent and the CAC 40 in France added 0.3 per cent. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.3 per cent.
Asian stock indexes skyrocketed. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong soared 4.2 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei 225 index surged 2.6 per cent while South Korea’s Kospi climbed 3.5 per cent.
“In September, before earnings season started … the market was kind of complacent about tariff issues,” said Lefkowitz. “It’s something I think the market was ignoring and is now more attuned to.”
SWEET BREW: Starbucks’ sales were better than expected, and customers spent more after it raised prices for brewed coffee. It said revenue from cold drinks improved as well, and revenue also improved in China. The stock jumped 10 per cent to $64.48.
MELTED CHEESE: Kraft Heinz sank 10.1 per cent to $50.53 after its profit in the third quarter fell way short of analyst forecasts. The maker of Oscar Mayer meats, Jell-O pudding and Velveeta cheese said costs grew and it’s continuing to make major investments in its business. Prices in the U.S. fell as stores ramped up discounts, especially for cheeses and drinks.
Other food companies also fell. General Mills lost 5.6 per cent to $41.84 and Conagra Brands shed 2.3 per cent to $34.80.
ENERGY: Oil prices continued to slip. Benchmark U.S. crude fell 0.9 per cent to $63.14 a barrel in New York and Brent crude shed 0.1 per cent to $72.83 a barrel in London.
Wholesale gasoline lost 0.5 per cent to $1.71 a gallon and heating oil fell 1.3 per cent to $2.17 a gallon. Natural gas rose 1.5 per cent to $3.28 per 1,000 cubic feet.
METALS: Gold fell 0.4 per cent to $1,233.30 an ounce. Silver dipped 0.1 per cent to $14.75 an ounce. Copper climbed 3.1 per cent to $2.81 a pound.
CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 113.13 yen from 112.69 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1386 from $1.1409.
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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay can be reached at http://twitter.com/MarleyJayAP
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