US stocks trade mixed as major tech sell-off offsets strong labor-market data

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• US stocks traded mixed Friday after the August jobs report showed strong job additions and a better-than-expected unemployment rate.
• The Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 traded higher after the jobs report was released.
• Tech stocks struggled in comparison following a steep decline on Thursday that saw the Nasdaq composite slip roughly 5%.
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US stocks traded mixed on Friday as traders weighed a better-than-expected August jobs report against the lingering effects of Thursday's tech-stock rout.

The US added 1.37 million jobs in August, slightly more than economist expectations. The unemployment rate also came in at 8.4%, handily besting consensus forecasts and well below the post-pandemic high of 14.7%.

The strong jobs report may help quell investor fears stoked after the Nasdaq composite index fell nearly 5% on Thursday, driven by sharp losses in market mega-caps like Apple, Facebook, and Tesla.

Here's where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. ET market open on Friday:

• S&P 500: 3,452.04, down 0.1%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 28,453.12, up 0.6% (160 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 11,318.90, down 1.2%

Read more: Morgan Stanley's wealth management CIO warns there are 'particularly ominous' signs about the state of the stock market's health — and recommends jumping into these 4 trades during the next major sell-off

While the Thursday market sell-off may have put pressure on Washington to ready an additional stimulus measure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Friday's strong jobs report may have slowed that urgency.

Investors continue to size up how long it will take for the economy to recover from the pandemic, and how much higher stocks can go. While tech stocks have led the market higher since the pandemic induced market correction began in February, valuations are beginning to be questioned as whether or not they are sustainable. 

Oil prices slid. West Texas Intermediate crude fell as much as 1.3%, to $40.84 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, slid 1.2%, to $43.53 a barrel, at intraday lows.

Read more: Ryan Murdock spent a decade in the semiconductor industry before amassing a real estate portfolio with 50 rental units. Here's why he's scooping up swaths of mobile homes after years of apartment investing.

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