US stocks fall as hiring pickup dims hopes for a rate cut

By The Associated Press

Stocks fell broadly and bond yields rose on Wall Street in early trading Friday after the government reported a strong pickup in hiring last month, complicating the Federal Reserve’s decision later this month on whether to lower interest rates.

The Labor Department said that employers added a robust 224,000 jobs in June. The pickup in hiring could give the central bank pause later this month when its policymakers are scheduled to meet and consider cutting the Fed’s benchmark interest rate.

Most investors have anticipated a Fed rate cut this month and perhaps one or two additional cuts later in the year after the central bank signaled in June that it was prepared to lower interest rates to keep the economy growing in the face of slowing global growth and the fallout from U.S. trade conflicts.

The S&P 500 fell 0.7 percent as of 10:05 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 139 points, or 0.5 percent to 26,828. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite slid 0.7 percent.

Major stock indexes in Europe also fell.