Stocks Struggled at Open after Jobs Report

U.S. stocks struggled at open on Friday after the September jobs report came in below expectations but the unemployment rate fell to its lowest since 1969. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 7.17 points, or 0.03%, to 26,620.31. The S&P 500 was up 0.79 point, or 0.03%, to 2,902.40. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 25.86 points, or 0.33%, to 7,853.65.

Oil prices edged higher on Friday, amid doubts about the severity of global production losses that will result from pending U.S. sanctions on Iranian exports. November West Texas Intermediate crude rose 31 cents, or 0.4%, to $74.64 a barrel. December Brent added 6 cents, or less than 0.1%, to reach $84.64 a barrel.

The September jobs report released Friday morning showed the U.S. economy added 134,000 jobs during the month while the unemployment rate fell to a new generational low of 3.7%. This is the lowest unemployment rate since December 1969.