As concerns grow over a temporary U.S. government work stoppage (shutdown), the New York stock market opened slightly lower.
As of 10:24 a.m. on the 30th (local time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 9.58 points, or 0.02%, at 46,306.49, according to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 index fell 7.89 points, or 0.12%, to 6,653.32, and the Nasdaq composite was down 59.97 points, or 0.27%, at 22,531.19 in transaction.
Fears of a U.S. federal government shutdown weighed on investor sentiment. Typically, the possibility of a shutdown does not significantly affect the market, but with the labor market recently slowing and risks of stagflation (rising prices amid slowing growth) emerging, some say the situation is different.
If the U.S. Congress fails to pass a short-term expenditure bill (continuing resolution, CR) by 12 a.m. on Oct. 1, when the 2025 fiscal year ends, the federal government will enter a shutdown. A shutdown means a state in which ordinary federal government public duties are temporarily suspended.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said, "I am an optimist, but this morning I am skeptical about whether we can avoid a shutdown."
The Labor Department said that if a shutdown occurs, the U.S. September nonfarm payrolls report scheduled for Oct. 3 will not be released. The nonfarm payrolls report is one of the key indicators to gauge whether the Federal Reserve (Fed) will cut the benchmark interest rate in October.
By industry, Firefly Aerospace (FLY) plunged more than 20% on news that its Alpha Flight 7 rocket for satellite launch exploded during a stage 1 test flight.
Data center operator CoreWeave (CRWV) jumped more than 10% on news that it will provide $14.2 billion worth of artificial intelligence (AI) cloud infrastructure to Meta (META).
Meanwhile, U.S. job openings for August matched market expectations. According to the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) 4th, job openings (seasonally adjusted) were tallied at 7,227,000. The market forecast was 7.2 million. The job openings rate also held at 4.3%, the same as the previous month.