Stocks fall as May jobs report shows US added 175,000 jobs

GlobalPost
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World stock markets headed downwards as the world awaited a pivotal May jobs report from the US, which will likely affect how the Federal Reserve operates its monetary stimulus program.

The report showed that unemployment ticked up to 7.6 percent from 7.5 percent, as employers added 175,000 jobs.

Temporary help agencies saw the strongest employment growth, adding 26,000 kobs, while food services remained strong, adding 38,000 in May.

The Labor Department revised April's job numbers down from 165,000 to 149,000, while raising March's numbers from 138,000 to 142,000.

The job report was projected to be largely positive, according to the Associated Press

If the job report revealed that May job creation continued to lag behind, it would be interpreted as a sign that the US is moving into a fourth year of economic slowdown, noted the International Business Times — and could cause the Federal Reserve to reevaluate the logic behind tapering its quantitative easing program. 

"I think market sentiment is still weak because there is still concern about what the next move of the Federal Reserve will be," Hong Kong strategist Linus Yip told the Associated Press.

The dollar hit a two-month low against Japan's yen on Friday, added Reuters.

"A strong number would highlight the risk of tapering as soon as September and would be dollar positive, but if we get a number around 100-120,000 then this could mean the Fed would rather wait," said Citi G10 currency strategist Valentin Marinov to Reuters.

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