02:06 PM EST, 01/10/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes were lower intraday, while Treasury yields surged as markets assessed official data showing that the economy added more jobs than expected in December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite were down 1.2% each at 42,149.3 and 19,252.9, respectively, after midday Friday. The S&P 500 fell 1.1% to 5,854.7. Among sectors, financials and real estate saw the biggest drops. Only energy and communication services were in the green.

US stock markets were closed Thursday to mourn the passing of former President Jimmy Carter.

In economic news, total US nonfarm payrolls rose by 256,000 last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The consensus was for a 165,000 increase, according to a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

"This was a robust employment report that reinforces the resilience of the US labor market and expansion and will keep the (Federal Reserve) on hold in January as they try to bring inflation pressures down," BMO said.

Markets are widely expecting the central bank's Federal Open Market Committee to leave interest rates unchanged later this month, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

The US two-year yield jumped 11.4 basis point to 4.38% intraday, while the 10-year rate gained 8.2 basis points to 4.76%.

In company news, Constellation Brands ( STZ ) shares sank 17%, the worst performer on the S&P 500, as the beer and wine company lowered its annual sales outlook after its fiscal third-quarter results missed Wall Street's expectations.

Walt Disney's ( DIS ) ESPN ( DIS ), Fox (FOX, FOXA), and Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ) said they will not launch their planned Venu Sports streaming service. Warner Bros. shares tumbled 5.1%, the second-worst Nasdaq performer, while Disney ( DIS ) lost 0.4%. Fox's class A and B shares dropped more than 1.5% each.

Constellation Energy ( CEG ) agreed to acquire privately held energy company Calpine in a cash-and-stock deal for a net price of $26.6 billion, including debt. Constellation Energy's ( CEG ) shares soared nearly 27%, the best performer on the Nasdaq and the second-best on the S&P 500.

Walgreens Boots Alliance ( WBA ) was the top gainer on the S&P 500, up 28%, after the drugstore chain logged better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results buoyed by sales growth across its divisions. The company reiterated its full-year earnings outlook amid a challenging US retail environment.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 3.1% to $76.19 a barrel intraday. "Oil prices gained, driven by concerns over potential supply disruptions due to increased sanctions on Russia and Iran," D.A. Davidson said in a note to clients.

Gold was up 0.9% at $2,713.20 per troy ounce, while silver increased 0.8% to $31.25 per ounce.