The S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.42% to close at 8,294 on Friday, extending losses from the previous session, with financial, technology and healthcare stocks leading the decline. Investor sentiment turned cautious ahead of a key US jobs report, which could influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy decisions for the year. Global stocks also faced pressure on Thursday after the release of the latest Fed minutes, which suggested a potential slowdown in the pace of policy easing amid renewed inflation concerns. Domestically, markets are now pricing in a 75% chance of a Reserve Bank of Australia rate cut next month, a significant increase from 50% just days ago. Notable losses included Commonwealth Bank (-1.7%), Appen (-1.1%), and Mesoblast (-5.1%). However, despite the setbacks, the benchmark index still gained 0.53% for the week.