Stocks Opened Lower despite Strong Jobs Data

U.S. stocks opened modestly lower on Friday, despite a better-than-expected payrolls report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 199.47 points, 0.68%, to 29,180.30. The S&P 500 decined 17.14 points, 0.51%, to 3,328.64. The Nasdaq Composite was down 61.09 points, or 0.64%, to 9,511.07.

Oil futures headed lower Friday as investors awaited more clarity on Russia’s stance on discussions centered on deepening global output cuts to help respond to the novel coronavirus outbreak in China. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery was 68 cents, or 1.3%, lower at $50.27 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. April Brent crude was off 61 cents, or 1.2%, at $54.30 a barrel.

The U.S. economy added a better than expected 225,000 jobs in January. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.6%, and average hourly earnings growth accelerated over last year.