The markets kicked off the week closing in the red zone with stocks trading lower amid a variety of economic news. The ISM Manufacturing Index hit 51.5, versus consensus expectations of 50.2, indicating manufacturing increased. The reading was up from 49.4 in August. The slip continued on Tuesday. West Texas Intermediate crude oil shed 0.25% to settle at $48.69 a barrel; however, Energy stocks led advancers on Wednesday. Stocks stepped up on rising crude oil prices. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 2.01% to settle at $50.29 a barrel. The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index climbed 5.7 points to 57.1, exceeding expectations. Factory orders also edged up 0.2% in August. Durable goods orders tacked on 0.1% while orders for nondurable goods rose 0.2%. Indices closed with mixed moves on Thursday. The Dow and NASDAQ shed some points while the S&P 500 eked out a fractional gain ahead of Friday’s jobs report. Labor Department numbers showed new jobless claims fell by 5,000 to 249,000 for the week ending October 1. The four-week average declined by 2,500 to 253,500, marking its lowest level since 1973. West Texas Intermediate crude tacked on 1.34% to settle at $50.50 a barrel. Trading closed in red territory on Friday, with stocks slipping on a downtick in oil prices and less-than-optimum employment numbers. West Texas Intermediate crude oil dipped 1.49% to settle at $49.69 a barrel. Meanwhile, Labor Department data showed the U.S. economy added 156,000 jobs in September versus a median estimate of 172,000. The U.S. unemployment rate edged up to 5% from 4.9%.
