Materials Gain as Dollar Slides on Jobs Data — Materials Roundup

Producers of metals and other raw materials rose as the dollar slid in the wake of jobs data.

An unexpectedly slim tally of 175,000 workers were added to U.S. payrolls in April, a far cry from the 240,000 anticipated, on average, by economists. The weakening in the jobs market was interpreted as a potential catalyst for rate cuts later this year.

For weeks, sectors such as materials, which are vulnerable to the downward price pressure and dollar moves associated with restrictive Fed policy, have been on the retreat because of heated inflationary data.

The resurgence of hopes for rate cuts, supported by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's rhetoric midweek, has buoyed these sectors once more.

Shares of Anglo American rose on Friday after a Reuters report that metals-trading giant Glencore was considering making a rival offer for the mining company, entering a bidding war with the world's largest miner BHP, which has offered $39 billion.

Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@dowjones.com