Photos of free-roaming cats that are part of daily life in Istanbul

ISTANBUL (AP) — Cats are an inseparable part of daily life in Istanbul, where thousands of free-roaming felines share the city’s streets, waterfronts, markets and historic neighborhoods with its more than 16 million residents.

They can be found almost everywhere — lounging outside bookstores and cafes, wandering through bazaars, watching ferries cross the Bosphorus, resting near mosques or unexpectedly appearing at soccer stadiums and wedding photo shoots.

For many visitors, the city’s cats become as memorable as landmarks such as the Hagia Sophia or the Grand Bazaar. Often, they can be found inside the landmarks. A cat named Gli lived in the Hagia Sophia for years, becoming a social media celebrity before dying in 2020 at the age of 16.

Residents routinely feed and care for the animals and small shelters and feeding stations can be found across the city. Their presence dates back to the Ottoman era, when cats helped protect homes and food stores by controlling rodents. Today, they remain a distinctive symbol of Istanbul and its long tradition of coexistence between people and animals.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

A cat sits on a street in the late afternoon at Karakoy district in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A stray cat sits next to people at the Karakoy sea promenade by the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 24, 2026.(AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A youngster plays with a cat near Galata tower in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A stray cat sits in front of the historic Yeni mosque at Eminonu district in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat rests in a shelter built by local residents in the Cihangir neighborhood of Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A stray cat sits on a bench in front of the Ortakoy mosque in the early morning in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat rests next to the corner flag during a training session at the Besiktas stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A fisherman feeds a cat at the Emirgan sea promenade next to the Bosporus in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat sits on a stool inside a bookstore in the Beyazit area in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A stray cat walks among cat-shaped souvenir pillows at the Eminonu commercial district in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat sits on the edge of a dock as a ferry arrives to Kadikoy ferry terminal crossing the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat sits on top of an Istanbul travel ticket machine at Kadikoy ferry terminal in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, July 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A cat sleeps next newlyweds during their photo session at Galata bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

A couple feeds stray cats at Macka park in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

Stray cats wait next to a fisherman at Karakoy sea promenade in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, June 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose on Wall Street Friday and Treasury yields fell after the government reported that employers unexpectedly cut 23,000 jobs last month.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% and is hovering around the record it set on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 138 points, or 0.3%, as of 11:21 a.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite rose 1.1%. Every major index is on track for weekly gains.

Technology stocks, with their big market values, did much of the heavy lifting for the broader market. They are often the heaviest weights determining the market’s direction. Nvidia jumped 2.3% and Broadcom rose 1%.

The bond market reacted more strongly to the weaker signal on the job market, which can be seen as allowing the Federal Reserve more time before raising interest rates to fight inflation.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.65% from 4.67% just prior to the jobs update. It was as low as 4.60% before recovering a bit.

The yield on the two-year Treasury, which more closely tracks expectations for Fed action on interest rates, fell to 4.20% from 4.22% prior to the report's release. It was as low as 4.15% before edging back up.

Overall, the report paints a dimmer picture of the jobs market, which has been one of the brighter areas of the economy amid rising inflation and worries about household spending. It included a revision to the figures for June and May that involved slashing a combined 103,000 jobs from payrolls for those months.

The Fed has been holding interest rates steady amid worries about hotter inflation, fueled by a rise in oil prices because of the U.S. war with Iran. Wall Street expects at least one rate increase by the end of the year, with forecasts shifting for the next meeting. Expectations for a rate cut in September are down to 42%, from 55% on Thursday and from 67% a week ago, according to CME FedWatch.

A weakening jobs market could make matters more complicated for the Fed, which has to balance supporting job growth with fighting inflation. Raising interest rates can help tame inflation by slowing economic growth. A weaker jobs market, though, could become even shakier under higher interest rates as businesses find it more difficult to expand under increased borrowing rates.

Businesses, and Wall Street, prefer lower interest rates because it can help boost investments. That might bolster a weakened jobs market, but it could worsen already stubborn inflation.

Wall Street will get several important inflation updates next week.

“Today’s weak payrolls print may ease the pressure on the Fed to raise rates at its September meeting, but next week’s inflation data will still likely be the deciding factor,” said Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, in a research note.

The jobs report caps a week dominated mostly by corporate earnings and concerns about the ongoing U.S. war with Iran.

Corporate earnings for the second quarter are on track for the strongest growth since 2021. Nearly 90% of companies in the S&P 500 have reported their results and analysts expect profit growth of 50% overall. That has helped allay some concerns on Wall Street about whether big gains for stocks in 2026 are justified. Strong profits help support those gains in stock values.

It was a light day for earnings as companies near the close of the latest round of reports.

Airbnb jumped 15.4% following the vacation-rental company's report late Thursday that showed stronger profit and revenue for its most recent quarter than analysts expected.

Oil prices gained ground. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1.2% to $83.47 a barrel.

Rising oil prices have been behind hotter inflation. Prices were as high as $113 per barrel at one point during the now five-month U.S. war with Iran. That raised prices for gasoline and shipping for a wide range of products. The U.S. and Iran have both said they are working on deals that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas once passed through.

Markets in Europe gained ground and markets in Asia were mixed.

Associated Press business writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

Specialist Michael Pistillo works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, Aug.. 5, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

People walk past the Nasdaq MarketSite, Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

People walk past the Nasdaq MarketSite, Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

People walk past an electronic board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Currency traders watch monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)