Global Economy LIVE | US stocks fall as jobs market slows slightly

After US jobs statistics revealed just a little downturn in the labour market, laying the door for more aggressive interest rate hikes, stocks declined and the currency rose on Friday. 

As the US Federal Reserve has made it plain it plans to continue aggressively raising interest rates until skyrocketing inflation is contained, even if that means plunging the economy into a recession, equity markets have taken a beating in recent months.

Despite the effects on the economy and the cost-of-living problem, the Bank of England must continue raising interest rates to combat runaway inflation, a BoE policymaker cautioned on Friday. 

Dave Ramsden, a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the central bank, also defended the BoE's recent choice to buy UK bonds and quell market turbulence brought on by the UK's tax-cutting budget.

US stocks dropped sharply in early trading Friday after data showed the economy was creating jobs at a strong pace, giving the Federal Reserve cover to continue with hefty interest rate hikes to quell inflation.

All three major US indices opened lower for the final trading day of the week, with bets on the Federal Reserve raising rates by 75 basis points at its next meeting increasing, sending the dollar higher.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.69%, the S&P 500 lost 2.17% and the Nasdaq Composite declined 2.79%.

The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 45 nations, was 1.95% lower.

The US economy added 263,000 jobs in September, higher than 250,000 consensus, the unemployment rate is 3.5 per cent. 

After years of record capital spending, chipmakers are warning on a weekly basis that demand is sputtering. In the latest sign of trouble, Samsung Electronics Co. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. reported disappointing results within hours of each other that widely missed projections.
 

According to official data released on Friday, Japan's foreign reserves decreased by a record $54 billion in September as market volatility around the world reduced the value of foreign bonds and led dollar sellers to intervene to stop the yen's sharp slide.

According to figures from the Ministry of Finance, the reserves were at their lowest level since the end of March 2017 at $1.238 trillion at the end of September.

The Indian rupee hit a record low against the dollar on Friday as rising oil prices, corporate dollar demand and growing fears of a hawkish Federal Reserve battered the currency this week.

The rupee fell as much as 0.4% to an all-time low of 82.356 to the dollar. It was also set to lose nearly 0.8% this week in its fourth straight week of losses. 

Asian stocks have declined extending a global equity slide to a third day, as investors fretted over recession risks amid signs of further aggressive central bank policy tightening.

The dollar and Treasury yields remained elevated after multiple Federal Reserve officials continued to talk up additional rate hikes ahead of a crucial U.S. jobs report later in the day, while rising crude oil prices compounded concerns about prolonged inflation.

European Union leaders will lock horns on Friday over whether and how to cap gas prices, as they attempt to curb a surge in energy prices that threatens to push the 27-nation bloc into recession and disrupt the EU's cherished single market.

The leaders, meeting in Prague for informal talks, are unlikely to come up with concrete measures on Friday, officials said, but should tell their energy and finance ministers which of the several available solutions to pursue further.