Stock Market Today: Dow Set to Open Up as Markets Eye Fresh Highs
Stocks were headed for more gains on Friday, with investors still unfazed by the ongoing government shutdown, even though the stalemate is set to deny the market a batch of key jobs data.
Futures tracking the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 96 points, or 0.2%. S&P 500 futures climbed 0.3%, and contracts tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 were also up 0.3%. The moves came after all three major indexes notched record closing highs in the previous session.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year note was 2 basis points higher, at 4.10%. Gold futures climbed 0.4% to $3,882 an ounce, and the dollar was flat against a weighted basket of its peers.
Wall Street has shrugged off the shutdown so far, even though it has already disrupted a couple of economic releases. The first Friday of every month usually marks the publication of nonfarm payrolls numbers, but that data will be suspended until Congress can resolve the funding impasse.
It seems unlikely that the uncertainty will dent equities, unless the shutdown drags on much longer than expected. The online prediction market Polymarket is showing a 46% chance that the shutdown lasts beyond Oct. 15, having stood at 34% a day ago.
“Yesterday brought no sign of an end to the impasse, with investors becoming increasingly concerned that it could drag on into next week,” Deutsche Bank analyst Jim Reid said. “So that added to concern about the shutdown having a larger economic impact, particularly given markets are lacking a lot of key data right now.”