Stocks fell sharply on Friday as a much weaker-than-anticipated jobs report for July ignited worries that the economy could be falling into a recession.

The broad market index dropped 1.84% to end at 5,346.56. The Nasdaq Composite lost 2.43% to close at 16,776.16, bringing the decline for the tech-heavy index from its recent all-time high to more than 10%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 610.71 points, or 1.51%, to finish at 39,737.26. At its session low, the 30-stock index was down 989 points.

he stock market reacted negatively to a bad unemployment report, and the Trump campaign lambasted Democrats for what some said are signs of a coming recession.

“Kamala Harris has proudly and repeatedly celebrated her role as Joe Biden’s co-pilot on ‘Bidenomics.’ She cast tie-breaking votes in the Senate for spending that put inflation on steroids, and despite the evidence that America’s working families are hurting she tells us these failed plans are working," read a statement from the campaign entitled "Kamalanomics."

How quickly the mood turns. Barely a fortnight ago stockmarkets were on a seemingly unstoppable bull run, after months of hitting new all-time highs. Now they are in free fall. America’s Nasdaq 100 index, dominated by the tech giants that were at the heart of the boom, has fallen by more than 10% since a peak in mid-July. Japan’s benchmark Topix index has clocked losses well into the double digits, dropping by 6% on August 2nd alone—its worst day since 2016 and, following a 3% decline on August 1st, its worst two-day streak since 2011.

Wall Street was jolted by rising economic uncertainty on Friday, and stocks skidded, capping off a turbulent week with a sharp decline.

Friday’s drop followed a report on U.S. hiring in July that was far weaker than expected, startling investors into worrying that the Federal Reserve has been too slow to cut interest rates. Traders were already growing uneasy about the state of the economy, as well as the prospects for the big technology stocks that had underpinned a market rally for much of the year, but the jobs report intensified the focus on the risks.

Job growth in the U.S. slowed much more than expected during July and the unemployment rate ticked higher, fueling fears of a broader economic slowdown, the Labor Department reported Friday.

Nonfarm payrolls grew by just 114,000 for the month, down from the downwardly revised 179,000 in June and below the Dow Jones estimate for 185,000. The unemployment rate edged higher to 4.3%, its highest since October 2021.

U.S. job growth cooled sharply in July while the unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to the highest level in nearly three years.

The Labor Department reported Friday that employers added 114,000 jobs in July, missing the 175,000 gain forecast by LSEG economists. The unemployment rate also unexpectedly inched higher to 4.3% against expectations that it would hold steady at 4.1%. 

It marked the highest level for the jobless rate since October 2021.

The US labor market cooled off far more than expected last month, underscoring concerns that the economy has slowed down too quickly and could lead to a recession.

Businesses added just 114,000 jobs in July, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday and the unemployment rate unexpectedly leapt to 4.3%, which is the highest since October 2021.

The American economy reads a little like a Dickens novel these days – and for Joe Biden, it’s in desperate need of a plot twist.

For more than a year, the narrative has been stuck between “best of times” data and “worst of times” sentiment. Unemployment has been incredibly low and consumer spending abnormally resilient. But consumers have proved dour, unwilling to give President Biden much credit because of the sting of recent high inflation and continuing sky-high housing costs.

The past two years have been very good for the U.S. economy. Unemployment has crept up a bit, but not by a lot, and the employed share of Americans in their prime working years is higher than, to make a random comparison, it was at any point during the Trump years. At the same time, inflation has come way down, defying the pessimistic predictions of many economists.

Economist Milton Friedman defined inflation as “too much money chasing after too few goods.” He could have just as easily described President Joe Biden’s economic agenda.  

For almost four years, Biden’s policies have flooded the marketplace with federal stimulus while squeezing the supply of goods and services through higher taxes and regulations. The result has been a cost-of-living crisis and an economy in decline.