February 7, 2025 – Major U.S. stock indices saw significant declines on Friday as investors processed disappointing employment data and a sharp fall in consumer sentiment.
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both closed down by 1%, while the Nasdaq Composite dropped by 1.4%. For the week, all three indexes posted losses, with the Dow and Nasdaq each slipping 0.5%, and the S&P 500 edging down by 0.2%.
The U.S. Labor Department’s monthly jobs report, released Friday morning, showed that job growth in January was weaker than anticipated, though the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to 4.0%. Given that the jobs report is a key factor the Federal Reserve monitors when making decisions on interest rates, this data holds significant weight for market participants.
Initially, stocks edged higher in response to the report, but a subsequent release revealing a sharp drop in consumer sentiment pushed the major indices into negative territory.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note, a key gauge of market sentiment regarding the economy and interest rate expectations, rose to 4.5%, up from 4.44% prior to the jobs report but well below the earlier levels of around 4.60%.
Amazon (AMZN) saw a 4% decline after offering a disappointing sales forecast, which overshadowed its better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings. Other prominent tech stocks also posted losses, with Alphabet (GOOGL), Tesla (TSLA), and Broadcom (AVGO) each falling roughly 3%. Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) dipped 2% and 1%, respectively, while Nvidia (NVDA) and Meta Platforms (META) defied the trend, recording modest gains.
In contrast, several companies saw their stock prices soar following the release of strong quarterly results. Pinterest (PINS), Affirm Holdings (AFRM), Doximity (DOCS), Expedia (EXPE), Cloudflare (NET), and Take-Two Interactive (TTWO) all surged more than 10%. On the other hand, Bill Holdings (BILL) and e.l.f. Beauty (ELF) experienced steep declines, dropping 35% and 20%, respectively.
Cryptocurrency markets also saw volatility, with Bitcoin falling below $96,000 after briefly surpassing $100,000 earlier in the day. Meanwhile, gold futures hit a record high of $2,910 before retracting to approximately $2,890, and WTI crude oil futures ended the day up by 0.5%.
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