A rally in chipmakers propped up the stock market as dip buyers emerged despite a solid reading on the labor market that reinforced bets the Federal Reserve will boost rates in December.
In the aftermath of a bruising rout, equities bounced at the end of what’s set to be their worst week since April 2025. An exchange-traded fund tracking chip giants climbed 4.5%. Short-dated Treasuries underperformed. Oil wavered as traders weighed progress in efforts to de-escalate the Iran war.
Nonfarm payrolls increased 165,000 last month, topping all forecasts, after an upward revision to the prior two months, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The unemployment rate fell to 4.1%.
The latest jobs print contradicts the growing bearishness that has emerged in the past few days, reminding investors that AI is not the economy, according to Florian Ielpo at Lombard Odier Asset Management.
“The key point is that this report once again confirms the economic strength highlighted by the Fed and all but seals the case for a December rate hike,” he added. “Main Street is doing just fine, thank you.”