04:01 PM EDT, 08/02/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes ended lower Friday, dragged lower in part by post-earnings sell-offs in Intel ( INTC ) and Amazon.com ( AMZN ) shares, as markets parsed the latest jobs report.

* The US economy added 114,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The consensus was for a 175,000 gain, according to a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The unemployment rate increased to 4.3% from June's 4.1%, which was the market view for July.

The report gives the Federal Reserve "the green light to start cutting rates in September, and the market's attention will now shift focus toward how many and how deep the coming cuts will be," BMO said in a note to clients.

* Markets are now pricing in a nearly 68% likelihood for a more aggressive 50-basis-point interest rate cut next month, up from 22% on Thursday, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

On Wednesday, the central bank's Federal Open Market Committee kept its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 5.25% to 5.50%, its eighth straight pause.

* September West Texas Intermediate crude oil closed down $2.79 to settle at $73.52 per barrel, while October Brent crude, the global benchmark, was last seen down $2.66 to $76.86 on concerns demand from major importers and the US is slowing and a flight from risk amid weakening stock markets.

* Apple ( AAPL ) shares were up 1.1% as the tech giant posted better-than-expected fiscal Q3 results after gains in iPad and Mac sales more than offset a decline in its iPhone product.

* Intel ( INTC ) shares plunged nearly 27% as the chipmaker reported Q2 financial results that fell short of Wall Street's views. The company outlined a $10 billion cost-cutting plan, including a headcount reduction of more than 15%, and said it will suspend dividends starting in Q4.