Better-than-expected US jobs report and AI concerns spook markets

Once again, it appears the good data was bad news for the market. US stocks fell overnight after the January jobs report came in better than expected, snapping a three-day winning streak for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Employment increased by 130,000 in January, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ January nonfarm payrolls report, which was postponed due to the partial government shutdown that ended on February 3.

This number exceeded the 55,000 increase expected by economists in the Dow Jones survey and was a significant increase from December’s revised figure of 48,000.

Market sentiment worsened as strong employment data made it less likely that the US Federal Reserve would cut interest rates.

However, the report also contained some red flags. Job growth gains are still largely concentrated in the health care sector, raising questions about the availability of job departures and new workers.

The revised BLS announcement puts job growth at just 15,00 jobs last year, which, in the words of Federal Reserve President Christopher Waller, means “zero, zip, nada.”

Given this uncertainty, investors are likely to take a wait-and-see approach when assessing the job market.

AI-related concerns also continued to permeate the stock market, with software company shares falling on Wednesday. ServiceNow Salesforce and Salesforce led the losses overnight, retreating more than 5% and 4%, respectively. Meanwhile, OpenAI and SK Telecom are considering setting up data in South Korea.

Things don’t look too good on the crypto-currency front either, with Bitcoin on pace to be in the red for the fourth consecutive week. The digital coin was last hovering around $67,000.

In Asia, Singapore is expected to release its budget later in the day.

—CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed to this report.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a resolution disapproving of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada, dealing a blow to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) and marking an unprecedented Republican rebuke of the president’s signature economic policies.

Concerns about AI, employment data hit US stocks. All three major Wall Street indexes fell on Wednesday after January jobs data failed to ease investors’ concerns about the labor market and AI-related worries continued to drag software stocks lower. European stocks ended mixed as investors assessed earnings at companies such as Dutch brewer Heineken, which announced thousands of job cuts over the next two years.

Musk’s xAI undergoes restructuring. SpaceX’s CEO said on Wednesday’s X Post that the company’s artificial intelligence venture, xAI, has undergone a reorganization that “requires a break with some talent” but is still “actively hiring.”

(PRO) A boom in funds that buffers against market declines. Investors seeking protection from market losses have flocked to these products, and demand is expected to continue, according to Morningstar analysts.

Europe’s answer to OpenAI announces multi-billion dollar AI infrastructure push in Sweden

French AI startup Mistral said Wednesday it will invest 1.2 billion euros ($1.43 billion) in digital infrastructure in Sweden, including an AI data center.

Founded in 2023, Mistral has emerged as one of Europe’s leading AI companies, raising a €1.7 billion funding round in September at a valuation of €11.7 billion. Dutch chip equipment manufacturer ASML
It contributed 1.3 billion euros to this round.

The company also counts DST Global, Andreessen Horowitz, Bpifrance, General Catalyst, and Index Ventures as investors, as well as major technology companies Nvidia and Microsoft.

— Kai Nicole Schwartz