Investors feel sting of strong US jobs report

IT WASN'T much of a surprise that the local equities market and its Asian peers felt the sting of last Friday's strong US jobs report. The better-than-expected data undercut investor hopes for an aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cut in July.

This saw the local Straits Times Index (STI) finish 32.58 points or 1 per cent down at 3,334.23. Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea closed lower.

Vanguard Partners managing partner Stephen Innes noted that after the strong payrolls report, "there some concerns that (Fed) chair (Jerome) Powell could walk down some of the market aggressive Fed rate cut pricing, and this too is hav…