Stock market today: Live updates

Stocks fell on Tuesday as traders digested the delayed release of the November’s jobs report.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite traded down 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 235 points, or 0.5%.

November’s jobs report came in better than expected, showing an increase of 64,000 jobs for the month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones predicted that nonfarm payrolls would grow by 45,000 in the period.

However, the BLS reported that October shed 105,000 jobs. The unemployment rate also increased to 4.6%, which was above the Dow Jones forecast for 4.5%, raising concerns about the state of the U.S. economy.

Odds of a Fed rate cut next month rose slightly following the latest jobs figures, though the CME FedWatch Tool still ultimately showed little chance of another reduction in January. Fed funds futures traders are currently pricing in a 26% chance of a rate cut next month, up from 24%.

“Job growth came in better than the consensus expectation, but not enough to give an all-clear sign as unemployment ticked up,” said Scott Helfstein, head of investment strategy at Global X. “This keeps another Fed cut for early next year on the table, which may help stabilize equity prices going into year end.”

The three benchmark U.S. indexes closed Monday in the red, pressured by losses in key artificial intelligence names.

Broadcom lost 5.6% during Monday’s session, while software company ServiceNow sank 11.5% and Oracle fell 2.7%. Microsoft shares also ended the session lower as investors continued to take profits from high-flying AI trades and move into other areas of the market, including health care and utilities. The U.S. stock market is still heading for a winning year with gains across each of the eleven S&P 500 sectors.