New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange ended in dispersed order Friday, operators easily digesting the disappointment yet marked job creation in the United States in August.

The Dow Jones closed down 0.21% at 35,369.09 points, the broader S&P 500 index almost at breakeven (-0.03% to 4,535.43 points) and the Nasdaq on a new record, in increase of 0.21% to 15,363.51 points.

The market reacted only weakly to the announcement, before the stock market, that the US labor market had created only 235,000 jobs in August, while it expected more than triple (750,000).

The brake is nevertheless supported, after 1.1 million jobs created in July and 962,000 in June.

It is largely attributed to the resurgence of the Delta variant of the coronavirus as well as the recruitment difficulties of American employers.

Despite this disappointment, the unemployment rate continued to decline, to 5.2%, as expected, from 5.4% last month.

"The market is sending us a message: it is no longer afraid of tapering", commented Gregori Volokhine, of Meeschaert Financial Services, about the slowdown in the program of purchases of financial assets by the American central bank (Fed) for support the US economy.

During his Jackson Hole speech a week ago, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell indicated that the reduction in these purchases could take place by the end of the year, without giving any precise timetable.

For Gregori Volokhine, this measure is now already fully "integrated into the lessons".

Because if that had not been the case, according to him, the bad employment figure would have been likely to ward off, in the minds of investors, an inflection of the Fed, and to trigger a wave of purchases of 'actions, which did not happen.

After the publication of the monthly employment report, operators will now go through a bank holiday weekend (no Monday session), followed by a long period without a major macroeconomic indicator and private company publications.

The main index of market volatility, the VIX, remains at a very low level.

Although the disappointment on employment is more likely to reduce expectations of a rate hike, the yield on 10-year government bonds rose on Friday, to stand at 1.32% against 1.28 % the day before.

On the Stock Exchange, space transport specialist Virgin Galactic continued to suffer the repercussions (-6.58% to 24.28 dollars) of the announcement, Thursday, of the United States Aviation Agency (FAA) that its spacecraft could not fly again immediately.

The regulator is awaiting the conclusions of an investigation into an incident that occurred during a theft in July with billionaire and company founder Richard Branson on board.

Semiconductor maker Broadcom shined (+1.18 to 497.68 dollars) after the publication, Thursday after market, of a quarterly profit above expectations.

The group also said it was counting on maintaining its momentum in the fourth quarter (August to October) of its staggered fiscal year.

The specialist in digital transactions DocuSign has also benefited (+ 5.26% to 310.05 dollars) also a better than expected earnings per share and forecasts that reassured investors on the ability of the group to digest the exit of the pandemic.

The "Chinese Uber", Didi Chuxing, symbol of the setbacks of Chinese companies listed on Wall Street, was wanted (+ 2.38% to 9.02 dollars) after the publication of information from the Bloomberg agency according to which a Beijing group of state-owned enterprises could take control of the company.

© 2021 AFP