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US stock market report – S&P 500 in seventh heaven

The S&P 500 was in seventh heaven once again, closing out the week with seven straight record finishes, after adding 0.8% on Friday. This took the weekly gain to 1.7%.

The Dow Jones and Nasdaq also gained, up 0.4% and 0.8% for the day and 1.0% and 1.9% for the week.

The highlight was the latest employment report which showed payrolls increased by 850,000 jobs last month, just 6.8 million below its February peak.

That said, the unemployment rate increased to 5.9% in what some are calling a ‘goldilocks’ scenario where the signs are good for the economy but not necessarily enough to bring forward a rate hike.

The bond rate actually fell to 1.4% on the news, supporting the likes of Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), which were up 4.8% and 3.2% for the week.

Featured video: Investing in innovations with Simon Erickson from 7Investing

Chip makers’ run continues

The semi-conductor sector remains in rude health despite the global shortage with shares in Dutch equipment supplier ASML (NASDAQ: ASML) jumping 1.3% after Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) confirmed it would begin using ASML’s industry-leading technology from 2024.

Competitor ASM International (AMS: ASM) also reported much stronger sales than originally forecast.

US stock market movers

Here’s how other popular US stocks finished the week on Friday.

Despite the positive lead from US markets, the S&P/ASX 200 (ASX: XJO) is expected to open flat on Monday. For all the latest, check out Rask Media’s ASX 200 morning report.

The Golden Rules of Investing

We might be experts in retirement, but with combined financial advice experience of 35+ years, we’ve nearly seen it all. 

In mid-2023, our senior team at Wattle Partners Financial Planning put the finishing touches on a brand-new report “The Golden Rules of Investing“.

In this free report, we outline the key principles that determine all of the portfolio construction and investment decisions of Wattle Partners. Collated over decades, this paper should be seen as a work-in-progress, constantly under review in light of the ever-evolving nature of markets. 

You’ll find the free report on my Author page. Simply click the button below to view the Golden Rules.

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At the time of publishing, the author of this article does not have a financial or commercial interest in any of the companies mentioned.

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Wattle Partners is a financial advice firm, servicing clients around Australia, specialising in retirement planning (pre and post retirement). 

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