Dow Jones Today: Stock Futures Little Changed Ahead of Jobs Report
U.S. stock futures were slightly higher in premarket trading Friday after the release of key labor market data to start what could be a quiet, low-volume session on Wall Street.
The U.S. added 206,000 jobs in June, about as many as economists had predicted. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.1% from 4% in May, while annual wage growth slowed to 3.9% from 4.1% the prior month. The report contrasted somewhat with Tuesday’s job openings and labor turnover survey, which surprised to the upside, and Wednesday’s private payroll report from ADP, which came in below estimates.
Treasury yields dropped following the jobs data, with the 10-year yield falling back below 4.3% after running up in the aftermath of the first presidential debate last Thursday. The Federal Reserve is looking for a slight downshift in both hiring and wage growth as evidence that high interest rates are sustainably returning inflation to its 2% target without sending the economy into recession.
Cryptocurrencies slumped Friday morning as the custodian of defunct exchange Mt. Gox began making payouts of nearly $9 billion to former creditors, which is expected to prompt significant selling.
Markets were closed for Independence Day yesterday after the Nasdaq and S&P 500 both climbed to record highs on Wednesday when soft manufacturing and services data buoyed the market’s hopes for interest rate cuts later this year.
Dow Futures Join S&P, Nasdaq in the Green After Jobs Data
7 minutes ago
Dow futures jumped into positive territory Friday morning after the release of jobs data showed the unemployment rate ticked up slightly in June as wage growth slowed. The data boosted optimism that the Federal Reserve will be in a position to cut interest rates as early as September.
Stock Futures Little Changed Ahead of Jobs Data
38 minutes ago
Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were off about 0.1% in premarket trading on Friday.
S&P 500 futures were flat after giving up earlier gains.
Nasdaq 100 futures were holding steady up about 0.1%.