, Columnist
Markets Threatened by Clowns With Rotating Planks
There may be more whacks around the head for investors after a counterintuitive response to disappointing jobs data.
What could go wrong?
Photographer: Hulton Archive/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
To get John Authers' newsletter delivered directly to your inbox, sign up here.
Friday’s U.S. unemployment data, which were far, far worse than had been expected, are still having an impact. Their effect was like that slapstick comedy moment when a clown holding a plank turns and inadvertently whacks his friend on the side of the head. Just as the “straight man” gets back on his feet, the clown turns again and whacks him on the other side.