Finance

June nonfarm payrolls grew by only 57,000, significantly missing economist expectations and signaling a cooling labor market. This shift has led traders to lower the probability of upcoming interest rate hikes, with market participants now expecting the Federal Reserve to maintain current rates through the summer.

Chip stocks experienced a notable selloff as investors locked in profits from the artificial intelligence rally, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index dropping over 5%. Major players like Micron and Nvidia saw declines amid concerns that the high capital expenditures in AI infrastructure may not yield immediate productivity gains.

Bitcoin and Ethereum saw upward momentum at the start of July, with Bitcoin climbing back above the $61,000 threshold. The digital asset market benefited from the softer jobs report and comments from Fed officials that reduced immediate fears of further monetary tightening.