GLOBAL MARKETS-Wall Street looks through pricey oil to cheer US job growth, chipmaker earnings

Fri, 08th May 2026 15:09

* US job growth beats expectations, Wall Street stocks gain

* Brent hovers near $100/barrel on renewed ⁠Mideast hostilities

* Taiwan, Japan, South Korea markets have strong weekly gains

BOSTON/LONDON, May 8 (Reuters) - Investors on Friday sent U.S. stocks higher as new data showed strong domestic job growth, even as oil prices remained elevated on continued fighting near the Strait of Hormuz.

The Dow ‌Jones Industrial Average rose 0.21%, the S&P 500 added 0.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.8%.

Chip stocks rebounded from the previous session's losses, with Microchip Technology rising 1.4% after forecasting first-quarter revenue above ⁠estimates. Qualcomm leapt about 4%, while Nvidia rose 2%.

Oil prices pared early gains on Friday, ⁠a day after renewed fighting near the Strait of Hormuz raised questions about the ceasefire between the United States and Iran. Benchmark Brent crude futures were last a touch higher at $100.24 a barrel.

U.S. employment increased more than expected in April while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, pointing to labor market resilience and reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve would leave interest rates unchanged for some time.

"More solid jobs data leaves the ‌Fed where it’s been for a while - watching and waiting, focused on the inflation side of its mandate," said Ellen Zentner, Chief Economic Strategist for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. "Rate cuts still aren’t on the near-term horizon, but the absence of inflationary threats in today’s report should quiet some of the chatter about a potential hike."

MIDDLE EAST CLASHES The U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in the Gulf and the UAE came under renewed attack, testing a month-long ceasefire. Both sides played down the situation, leaving investors uncertain.

"The market seems to be taking every chance to price in a quick end to the war," said Jan von Gerich, chief analyst at Nordea.

"But it seems unlikely there's ‌going to be an agreement. I still think there are going to be disruptions in the Strait (of Hormuz) for a longer time and it won't be resolved any time soon." European stocks were lower. The pan-continental STOXX 600 was down ‌0.5%.

Asian equities slipped from recent highs but remained on track for a robust week, supported by strong revenue and spending plans from U.S. AI hyperscalers, which have boosted regional chipmakers. MSCI's broadest index of Asian shares outside Japan fell 0.8%, although South Korea's KOSPI inched up 0.1%, bringing its weekly gain to more than 13.5% - its largest since 2008 - helped by rallies in Samsung and SK Hynix.

Taiwan's benchmark was up 7% this week and Japan's Nikkei rose 5.4%.

DOLLAR INCHES LOWER The dollar edged lower and was set for a second straight weekly decline, ‌while the yen remained in focus after Japan intervened in currency markets in early May to stem its slide, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The dollar was last down 0.26% to 156.5 yen, and was headed for a second weekly fall against Japan's currency. Gains beyond 155 have proved difficult to sustain following suspected intervention totalling ⁠nearly $70 billion ⁠since last Thursday. The euro last bought $1.178, while China's yuan , Asia's best-performing currency since the war broke out, hovered ‌near 6.8 per dollar, close to its strongest since 2023.

The pound and UK government bonds climbed on Friday after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he would not resign despite bruising losses for his ruling Labour Party in local elections.

TARIFFS A U.S. trade court ruled President Donald Trump's latest 10% temporary global duties are unjustified under a 1970s trade law. But analysts expect ‌a swift appeal and little overall impact on U.S. levies. Treasury yields tracked crude prices higher on Thursday as traders worried about inflation, but did not move much more on Friday, with the benchmark 10-year yield at 4.354%, down 4 basis points. Bitcoin was drifting towards a sixth weekly gain in a row at $79,660. (Reporting by Lawrence Delevingne in Boston, Samuel Indyk in London and Tom Westbrook in Singapore. Editing by Elaine Hardcastle, Mark Potter and Toby Chopra)