NEW YORK, New York - A flat to slightly improved non farm payrolls and employment report on Thursday did little to spark interest on U.S. equity markets.

"Both total nonfarm payroll employment (+57,000) and the unemployment rate (4.2 percent) changed little in June, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a statement Thursday. Employment continued to trend up in professional and business services, social assistance, and health care. Leisure and hospitality lost jobs," the statement said.

The Dow Jones industrials hit a new record high while the Nasdaq Composite lost ground.

Semiconductors were lower for a second day in a row. "This is a rotation potentially out of a sector that's been red hot for the last few months and into other areas, but I also do think that there's a little bit of a revaluation of the AI trade in itself," Anshul Sharma, chief investment officer at Savvy Wealth told CNBC Thursday. "If companies are more sensitive to the cost of compute, is that going to be the next area that they're going to focus on?"

The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted an impressive gain, soaring 594.83 points, or 1.14 percent, to finish at 52,900.07. The index touched an intraday high of 52,903.85 and held firmly above its session low of 52,395.22, reflecting broad-based buying across cyclical sectors including financials, energy, and industrials.

In contrast, the NASDAQ Composite struggled, losing 207.36 points, or 0.80 percent, to close at 25,832.67. The tech-heavy index came under pressure as megacap growth stocks, including semiconductor and artificial intelligence plays, gave back some of their recent gains following profit-taking and concerns over valuations.

The broader Standard and Poor's 500 ended the session virtually unchanged, edging up just 0.01 points, or 0.00 percent, to settle at 7,483.24. Trading volume on the benchmark index reached 3.373 billion shares, as it traded between a low of 7,427.55 and a high of 7,540.75. The flat close for the S&P 500 underscored the tug-of-war between cyclical gainers and technology losers, leaving the index essentially flat on the day.

The divergence between the Dow and the Nasdaq highlights a clear rotation trade, with investors moving capital toward undervalued, dividend-paying names that stand to benefit from a resilient U.S. economy, while paring exposure to richly priced growth stocks that have led the rally for much of the past year.

All three major U.S. indexes remain well above their 52-week lows, with the S&P 500 trading near the upper end of its range and the Dow hitting a new all-time intraday peak during the session.

FX market roundup: U.S. dollar slides across the board as risk appetite improves

The U.S. dollar came under broad selling pressure on Thursday, weakening against all of its major peers as improving risk sentiment and shifting interest-rate expectations drove traders away from the safe-haven greenback.

The euro strengthened firmly against the dollar, with the EUR-USD pair rising 0.46 percent to close at 1.1429. The single currency benefited from upbeat European economic data and hawkish remarks from European Central Bank officials, who signaled that policy tightening may continue longer than previously anticipated.

The British pound also posted solid gains, with GBP-USD advancing 0.53 percent to settle at 1.3346. Sterling was supported by better-than-expected U.K. services sector activity and growing expectations that the Bank of England will hold rates higher for longer to combat persistent inflation.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar tumbled as USD-JPY dropped 0.88 percent to 161.1500. The sharp move lower came as Japanese authorities stepped up verbal intervention warnings, with finance ministry officials reiterating their readiness to act against excessive yen weakness. Safe-haven flows into the yen also picked up amid volatility in Asian equity markets.

The Australian dollar gained ground, with AUD-USD climbing 0.38 percent to 0.6919, as the commodity-linked currency tracked higher iron ore and gold prices. Resilient Chinese trade data also provided a tailwind for the Aussie.

In North America, the Canadian dollar strengthened modestly against its U.S. counterpart, with USD-CAD slipping 0.21 percent to 1.4186. The loonie found support from firmer crude oil prices, though gains were capped by cautious comments from the Bank of Canada regarding the domestic economic outlook.

The Swiss franc was one of the day's outperformers, with USD-CHF falling 0.74 percent to 0.8036. The franc rallied as investors sought shelter in the traditional safe-haven currency, while Swiss National Bank officials maintained a relatively hawkish stance compared to the Federal Reserve.

The broad-based dollar weakness came as U.S. Treasury yields eased and traders priced in a greater probability of Federal Reserve rate cuts later this year, following a string of softer labor market and inflation readings. Markets now look ahead to Friday's U.S. producer price index data for further clues on the Fed's policy trajectory.

"There's a clear shift in sentiment away from the dollar as growth optimism picks up outside the U.S.," said a senior FX strategist at a London-based investment bank. "The moves we're seeing today suggest that the market is increasingly comfortable with riskier currencies, while the dollar is losing its yield advantage."

Trading volumes were above average as the month-end fixing and portfolio rebalancing flows added to the volatility, with traders also monitoring geopolitical developments and central bank speeches for directional cues.

Global stock markets end Thursday mixed as tech selloff hits Asia, while European bourses advance

Global stock markets closed on a mixed note Thursday, with European benchmarks posting solid gains while Asian indexes slumped, dragged down by a sharp selloff in technology and semiconductor shares.

In Canada, the S&P/TSX Composite index advanced 109.68 points, or 0.31 percent, to close at 34,966.67, with trading volume of 334.342 million shares. The Canadian benchmark was lifted by strength in energy and financial stocks, as crude oil prices climbed and bond yields eased. The TSX also benefited from a weaker U.S. dollar, which boosted the value of commodity-related shares.

In London, the FTSE 100 climbed 174.53 points, or 1.67 percent, to settle at 10,652.87, bouncing from its session low of 10,436.76.

Germany's DAX P outperformed, jumping 540.60 points, a gain of 2.16 percent, to finish at 25,580.88 after touching an intraday high of 25,655.82.

In France, the CAC 40 added 137.57 points, or 1.65 percent, closing at 8,474.86, while the broader EURO STOXX 50 I rose 77.97 points, or 1.24 percent, to end at 6,360.47. The Euronext 100 Index gained 14.82 points, or 0.78 percent, finishing at 1,921.09, and Belgium's BEL 20 advanced 85.98 points, or 1.51 percent, to 5,788.97.

European investors appeared encouraged by easing bond yields and better-than-expected economic data from the region, with all major bourses trading well above their 52-week lows.

In Asia, however, the mood was decidedly darker. Japan's Nikkei 225 plunged 1,741.81 points, a steep decline of 2.4 percent, to close at 68,733.15, as export-oriented stocks took a hit from a stronger yen and concerns over global demand.

South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index suffered a dramatic rout, crashing 655.32 points, or 7.89 percent, to finish at 7,648.09 – its worst single-day drop in years, fueled by a collapse in semiconductor and battery stocks.

In China, the SSE Composite Index also fell, losing 83.54 points, or 2.03 percent, to end at 4,028.90, as weak factory data and lingering property-sector woes weighed on sentiment. Taiwan's TWSE Capitalization Weighted Stock Index declined 274.83 points, or 0.58 percent, closing at 46,744.16.

Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, Hong Kong's HANG SENG INDEX managed a modest gain, rising 174.01 points, or 0.76 percent, to 23,055.03, helped by bargain-hunting in tech and financials.

In Singapore, the STI Index added 55.65 points, or 1.08 percent, to finish at 5,217.15.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged up just 1.60 points, or 0.02 percent, to 8,724.50, while the broader ALL ORDINARIES slipped 0.50 points, or 0.01 percent, to 8,930.90. In neighbouring New Zealand, the S&P/NZX 50 INDEX GROSS fell 28.31 points, or 0.21 percent, to 13,582.19, while Israel's TA-125 gained 21.11 points, or 0.52 percent, closing at 4,098.21.

India's S&P BSE SENSEX rose 579.48 points, or 0.75 percent, to close at 77,502.12, supported by gains in financial and consumer stocks.

In Indonesia, the IDX COMPOSITE advanced 49.44 points, or 0.87 percent, to 5,744.56, and Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI added 5.00 points, or 0.30 percent, to end at 1,661.83.

In the Middle East, Egypt's EGX 30 Price Return Index rose 44.70 points, or 0.09 percent, to finish at 50,532.70 on volume of 344.747 million shares, and the

In Africa, South African Top 40 USD Net TRI Index jumped 110.69 points, or 1.67 percent, to 6,754.93.

The divergent performance underscores growing investor rotation out of overvalued tech names in Asia into European value stocks, as markets brace for key U.S. inflation data due Friday. Traders also continued to monitor central bank policy signals, with the European Central Bank hinting at a cautious approach to future rate cuts, while the Bank of Japan faces pressure to respond to the yen's volatility.

(This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence).

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