U.S. nonfarm new hiring's annual revision worsened more than expected and was sharply revised downward, sending the New York stock market off to a mixed start.
As of 11:55 a.m. on the 9th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average on the New York Stock Exchange was up 76.65 points (0.17%) from the previous session at 45,591.60.
The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 index rose 2.05 points (0.03%) to 6,497.20 from the previous session, and the Nasdaq composite gained 6.90 points (0.03%) to 21,805.60.
The U.S. Department of Labor on this day released a preliminary annual benchmark revision for nonfarm payrolls reflecting the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) for the 12 months through the first quarter of this year.
According to the data, during this period employment in the nonfarm institutional sector fell by 911,000 from the previously reported figure. It means new hiring was overstated by more than 900,000 in the prior releases.
The preliminary figure leans toward the negative end of Wall Street's expectations. Earlier last month, Goldman Sachs estimated that the increase in employment through the first quarter of this year would be revised down by 550,000 to 950,000. The Wall Street average estimate was a decrease of 680,000.
Still, although the new hiring figure fell sharply, the market appears to view it as within the expected range, and stocks are not reacting sensitively. Yields on U.S. Government Bonds and the dollar index momentarily widened their declines but have since returned to flat territory.