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NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 U.S. stocks are sticking near their records Friday following a\u00a0highly anticipated report<\/a>\u00a0on the job market that showed a slowdown in hiring and contained nuggets of data for both optimists and pessimists.<\/p>\n The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in its first trading after the Fourth of July holiday, following two straight days where it set all-time highs. The Dow<\/a> Jones Industrial Average was down 94 points, or 0.2%, as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq<\/a> composite was adding 0.4% to its own record.<\/p>\n The action was a bit more decisive in the bond market, where Treasury yields sank following the nuanced U.S. jobs report. Employers hired more workers last month than economists expected, but the number was still a slowdown from May\u2019s hiring. Plus, the unemployment rate unexpectedly ticked higher, and the U.S. government said hiring in earlier months was lower than it had previously indicated.<\/p>\n Altogether, the data reinforced belief on Wall Street that the U.S. economy\u2019s growth is slowing under the weight of high interest rates. That\u2019s precisely what investors want to see, because a slowdown would\u00a0keep a lid on inflation<\/a>\u00a0and could push the\u00a0Federal Reserve to begin cutting<\/a>\u00a0its main interest rate.<\/p>\n The question is whether the Federal Reserve can time its next moves precisely, where it lowers rates early and significantly enough to keep the slowdown from sliding into a recession but not so much that it allows inflation to regain strength and take off again.<\/p>\n The clearest takeaway from the jobs report for traders was that it would help push the Fed to cut its main interest rate later this year, likely in September. The two-year Treasury yield, which closely tracks expectations for Fed action, fell to 4.63% from 4.71% late Wednesday.<\/p>\n The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which is the centerpiece of the bond market, fell to 4.31% from 4.36%.<\/p>\n Friday\u2019s jobs report follows a mass of data showing a slowdown across the U.S. economy. Reports earlier this week said business activity in both the U.S. services and manufacturing sectors contracted last month, turning in weaker readings than economists expected. And U.S. shoppers at the\u00a0lower end of the income spectrum<\/a>\u00a0have been showing how difficult it is to keep up with still-rising prices, as balances owed on\u00a0credit cards<\/a>\u00a0swell.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat matters for long-term investors is whether fears of a recession become a reality,\u201d said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management. \u201cWe think it\u2019s unlikely we\u2019ll see a recession this year or next, but that doesn\u2019t mean the markets won\u2019t fear one.\u201d<\/p>\n On Wall Street, gold miner Newmont<\/a> rose 1.4% for one of the bigger gains in the S&P 500. It benefited from a 0.7% tick higher for the price of gold, which usually benefits from falling interest rates. That\u2019s because bonds paying high yields can pull investors away from gold, which pays its holders nothing.<\/p>\n Modest gains for some\u00a0big, influential stocks<\/a>\u00a0also helped support the market, even though the majority of stocks within the S&P 500 fell. Apple<\/a> rose 1.5%, and Microsoft<\/a> added 1.2%.<\/p>\n Amazon<\/a> rose 1% after the announcement of a deal where the parent company of\u00a0Saks Fifth Avenue will buy Neiman Marcus Group<\/a>\u00a0for $2.65 billion. Amazon will hold a minority stake in the deal.<\/p>\n On the losing end of Wall Street were companies tied closely to cryptocurrency activity, as bitcoin tumbled below $56,000 from nearly $63,000 early this week. The cryptocurrency\u2019s value is back to where it was in February.<\/p>\n Coinbase<\/a> Global fell 4.6%, and Robinhood Markets dropped 2.9%.<\/p>\n In stock markets abroad, London\u2019s FTSE 100 fell 0.5% after U.K. voters ushered in a new regime by throwing out Conservatives in this week\u2019s\u00a0national election<\/a>.<\/p>\n The United Kingdom experienced a run of turbulent years during Conservative rule that left many voters pessimistic about their country\u2019s future. The U.K.\u2019s exit from the European Union followed by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine battered the economy. Rising poverty and cuts to state services have led to gripes about \u201cBroken Britain.\u201d<\/p>\n Germany\u2019s DAX rose 0.2% after the government agreed on a\u00a0budget for 2025<\/a>\u00a0and a stimulus package for Europe\u2019s largest economy, ending a monthslong squabble that threatened to upend Chancellor Olaf Scholz\u2019s center-left coalition.<\/p>\n The disagreements had fueled speculation that the already unpopular government could collapse and prompt a snap parliamentary election in which Germany could follow other European countries by\u00a0swinging toward the political right<\/a>.<\/p>\n In Asia, Japan\u2019s Nikkei 225 topped 41,000 early Friday to rise above its\u00a0record closing level<\/a>\u00a0set on Thursday, but it ended the day marginally lower.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\nSubscribe to the CEO Daily newsletter to get global CEO perspectives on the biggest stories in business. Sign up for free<\/a>.<\/div>\n