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A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., August 5, 2026. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

  • Summary

  • Companies

  • Indexes rise: Dow 0.17%, S&P 0.62%, Nasdaq 1.3%

  • Atlassian surges after Q4 profit, revenue beat

  • All three indexes set for best weekly showing since April

  • July nonfarm payrolls at -23,000 versus +80,000 estimate

Aug 7 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes ​were on track for strong weekly gains on Friday after data showed the U.S. economy unexpectedly shed jobs last month, tempering ‌speculation of the Federal Reserve raising borrowing costs in September.

A Labor Department report showed nonfarm payrolls fell 23,000 in July, far below the 80,000 job additions that economists polled by Reuters had expected.

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"For the Fed, the report could keep policymakers on track to hike (rates); however, there may be somewhat less urgency, in our view, ​with the timing likely dependent on incoming inflation and employment data over the months ahead," said Brian Therien, senior ​analyst at Edward Jones.

Money market data showed traders pared back expectations for an increase in borrowing costs in September, with ⁠odds of a hike now at about 20%, from 55% before the report, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Under new Chair Kevin Warsh, the ​U.S. central bank has offered investors little forward guidance on monetary policy, sharpening the focus on economic data and commentary from policymakers.

Payrolls, ​however, have a tendency to be softer in July, and economists view the labor market as being in "slow hire, slow fire" mode.

At 11:36 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab rose 91.87 points, or 0.17%, to 53,976.97, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab gained 48.02 points, or 0.62%, to 7,757.98, and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab ​was up 343.47 points, or 1.30%, to 26,691.82.

All three main indexes were headed for their best weekly showing since April, as robust ​earnings from several sectors have propelled U.S. stocks higher lately.

A strong show from AI-related companies has quelled some concerns about elevated AI spending not ‌yielding conclusive ⁠results, pushing the Dow and the S&P 500 to fresh record highs, while helping the Nasdaq recover from a pullback that briefly pushed it nearly 10% below its previous peak.

On Friday, eight of the 11 S&P sectors were trading higher, with consumer discretionary (.SPLRCD), opens new tab leading gains while energy (.SPNY), opens new tab lagged.

Elon Musk's SpaceX (SPCX.O), opens new tab surged 10.6% a day after the expiry of the first of several share lockup restrictions following its record public ​offering in June.

Collaboration software maker Atlassian (TEAM.O), opens new tab jumped ​30.2% while chip company Microchip Tech (MCHP.O), opens new tab ⁠advanced 13.8% after both forecast quarterly revenue above estimates.

The S&P 500 software and services index (.SPLRCIS), opens new tab rose 1.5% as software stocks found sure footing. Cybersecurity company Cloudflare (NET.N), opens new tab also gained 7.3% after raising its full-year revenue forecast above ​estimates.

Chip stocks (.SOX), opens new tab, which have seen immense volatility in the last few months, were 2.3% higher. Heavyweight ​Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab climbed 2.6%.

Within ⁠the space, memory-linked companies were again under pressure after Thursday's weakness. Sandisk (SNDK.O), opens new tab, Western Digital (WDC.O), opens new tab, Micron Technology (MU.O), opens new tab and U.S.-listed shares of SK Hynix were all lower.

Of the more than 400 companies on the S&P 500 that have reported earnings so far this quarter, more than 85% have beaten ⁠analysts' expectations, ​above the 68% beat rate seen in a typical quarter since 1994, according ​to LSEG I/B/E/S data.

Among other movers, vacation rental company Airbnb (ABNB.O), opens new tab rose 15.4% after beating second-quarter revenue estimates, while Trade Desk (TTD.O), opens new tab dropped 21.7% after the ad-tech firm forecast third-quarter revenue ​below expectations.

Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Niket Nishant; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Pooja Desai

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Energycategory · August 7, 2026 · 5:53 PM UTC · ago

Buyers in the Middle East are looking to secure liquefied ​natural gas from Canada as a hedge against geopolitical turmoil, the president of the company that majority-owns Canada's Woodfibre LNG project ‌said.

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Read Original at Reuters →