Nasdaq Hits Record High as Weak US Jobs Report Fuels Rate-Cut Hopes

The Nasdaq climbed to a record high after the US economy added just 29,000 jobs in September, a figure well short of expectations and one that investors read as reducing the likelihood of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates in the near term.

The weaker-than-expected payrolls number fed into broader market optimism that the central bank will hold off on further monetary tightening, a scenario that tends to favor growth and technology stocks, which make up a large share of the Nasdaq index.

Inflation Pressures Persist in Europe

Even as US jobs data pointed to a cooling labor market, inflation signals out of Europe told a different story. Core inflation in the eurozone, which strips out volatile categories such as energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, rose to 2.5% in September, up from 2.4% in August, according to figures released the same day.

The uptick in core inflation complicates the picture for the European Central Bank as it weighs its own policy path, with underlying price pressures proving more persistent than headline inflation figures might suggest.

UK Diesel Prices Set a New Record

In the United Kingdom, drivers faced fresh strain at the pump as diesel prices hit a record high of £2 a litre, adding to cost-of-living pressures for households and businesses that rely on diesel-powered transport and logistics.

The combination of a softening US labor market, elevated European inflation and record UK fuel costs underscores the uneven nature of the current economic landscape, with central banks on both sides of the Atlantic navigating different, and at times conflicting, signals as they set monetary policy in the months ahead.