US: Stocks open on a high note

[NEW YORK] Wall Street equities brushed off lackluster private jobs data and fears about the Delta variant of Covid-19 to open higher on Wednesday in the first trading session of the month.

Stocks have posted steady gains and a series of records for months, with just a few pauses, and seemed on track to continue that trend.

About 20 minutes into the session, the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average was essentially flat at 35,348.49.

The broad-based S&P 500 rose 0.2 per cent to 4,531.97, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.6 per cent to 15,350.66.

Investors seemed unconcerned by the big miss in private hiring in August, which at 374,000, according to payroll services firm ADP, was about half what economist had been expecting, potentially a red flag for the critical government jobs report due Friday.

The data "has highlighted a downshift in the labor market recovery," ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said.

But that was offset by news that retail giant Walmart is seeking to add 20,000 permanent positions.

AFP