Wall Street Stocks Rebounded, Payrolls Expanded In April

Barry Adams
05 May, 2023
New York City

Stocks on Wall Street opened higher after payrolls expanded in April reflecting labor market strength. 

Non-farm payrolls expanded in April and jobless rate dropped to five-decade low after professional and business services, health care and leisure and hospitality led the additions. 

 

Payrolls Additions Expanded in April 

The U.S. economy accelerated net new jobs in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. 

Non-farm payrolls increased 253,000 in April after the economy added downwardly revised 165,000 in March. 

Job additions in March were sharply lowered from the initial estimate of 236,000. 

Both the unemployment rate, at 3.4%, and the number of unemployed persons, at 5.7 million, changed little in April. 

The unemployment rate has ranged from 3.4% to 3.7% since March 2022 and dropped to a five-decade low in April and matched the level in February. 

Both the labor force participation rate, at 62.6%, and the employment-population  ratio, at 60.4%, were unchanged in April and remained below their  pre-pandemic February 2020 levels of 63.3% and 61.1%, respectively. 

In April, employment in professional and business services increased 43,000, in health care increased 40,000 and leisure and hospitality by 31,000. 

In April, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls  rose by 16 cents, or 0.5%, to $33.36 and extended annual wage gains to 4.4%.  

 

U.S. Indexes & Yields 

The S&P 500 index jumped 0.9% to 4,098.82 and the Nasdaq Composite 0.4% to 12,069.62. 

The yield on 2-year Treasury notes hovered at 3.86%, 10-year Treasury notes edged down to 3.44% and 30-year Treasury bonds held at 3.79%. 

Crude oil rose $1.72 to $70.28 a barrel and natural gas prices fell 1 cent to $2.08 a thermal unit. 

 

U.S. Stock Movers 

Apple Inc increased 2.7% to $170.26 after the maker of popular electronics gadgets reported higher-than-expected sales and earnings. 

Expedia Group Inc soared 7.5% to $95.87 after the online travel booking platform reported record first quarter revenue and gross bookings soared 20%. 

Carvana Company soared 45% to $10.50 after the online used car dealer reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss. 

DoorDash Inc increased 4.1% to $65.40 after the online delivery platform lifted its annual outlook and the company said demand for its services remained strong. 

Lyft Inc plunged 13.9% to $9.20 after the ride-hailing company reported a larger-than-expected loss despite healthy demand for its services. 

Bumble Inc jumped 8.1% to $19.06 after the online dating app operator reported strong activities on its platform. 

DraftKings Inc jumped 14.6% to $24.43 after the sports betting company lifted its annual outlook on the back of a strong increase in its quarterly revenue.