Forexpros – U.S. stocks were sharply lower on Monday, as sentiment waned after Friday’s U.S. nonfarm employment data and after a Chinese inflation report dented expectations Beijing will implement further monetary easing measures.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 1.02%, the S&P 500 index plummeted 1.24%, while the Nasdaq Composite index retreated 1.18%.
U.S. equity markets were closed for the Good Friday holiday on Friday, but stock futures fell sharply following the release of the weaker-than-expected jobs data.
The U.S. Department of Labor said nonfarm payrolls rose by a meager 120,000 in March, the lowest since December and well below expectations for a 203,000 increase.
It was the first time since November that hiring failed to top the 200,000 level, renewing concerns over the health of the U.S. economy.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 8.2%, the lowest since January 2009, from 8.3% in February. However, the data showed that the decline stemmed entirely from people dropping out of the labor force.
The weaker-than-expected jobs report broke a string of strong employment gains in recent weeks, raising questions about the health of the U.S. economy.
Market participants were also bracing for the start of the U.S. first quarter earnings season on Tuesday.
Apple shares slid 0.71% after BTIG downgraded the tech giant to “neutral” from “buy,” citing possible pricing pressures that may force the company to cut prices on its iPhone and following a sharp run up in the stock this year.
Elsewhere in the tech sector, AOL surged 35.88% after the Internet services company agreed to sell 800 of its patents and related applications to Microsoft in a deal valued at about USD1.06 billion in cash.
Shares in Microsoft were down 0.98% after the news.
Meanwhile, Avon lost 1.48% after it named Sherilyn McCoy as its new CEO. The cosmetic company’s current CEO Andrea Jung will become executive chairman.
Last week Avon received an unsolicited USD10 billion takeover bid from privately-held fragrance company Coty.
Other stocks in focus included aluminum giant Alcoa, due to be the first Dow Jones Industrial Average component to report earnings for the first quarter after Tuesday’s closing bell. Google, JP Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo are also on tap to report this week.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets remained closed for the Easter holiday.
During the Asian trading session, Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.5%, while South Korea’s Kospi Composite Index dropped 1.6%. With markets in Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand and Thailand closed for holidays, trading volumes were thin.
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