Latest news with #S&P500E-minis
Gulf Today
20 hours ago
- Business
- Gulf Today
US job growth slows in May; unemployment rate steady
US job growth slowed in May amid headwinds from tariff uncertainty, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 per cent, potentially giving the Federal Reserve cover to delay resuming interest rate cuts for a while. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 139,000 jobs last month after rising by a downwardly revised 147,000 in April, the labour Department's Bureau of labour Statistics said in its closely watched employment report on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 130,000 jobs added after a previously reported 177,000 rise in April. Estimates ranged from 75,000 to 190,000 jobs. The unemployment rate remained at 4.2 per cent for the third straight month. The economy needs to create roughly 100,000 jobs per month to keep up with growth in the working age population. That number could decline as President Donald Trump has revoked the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of migrants amid an immigration crackdown. Much of the job growth this year reflects worker hoarding by businesses amid Trump's flip-flopping on tariffs, which economists say has hampered companies' ability to plan ahead. Opposition to Trump's tax-cut and spending bill from hardline conservative Republicans in the US Senate and billionaire Elon Musk adds another layer of uncertainty for businesses. Employers' reluctance to lay off workers potentially keeps the US central bank on the sidelines until the end of the year. Financial markets expect the Fed will leave its benchmark overnight interest rate unchanged in the 4.25 per cent-4.50 per cent range this month, before resuming policy easing in September. US Treasury yields rose after data on Friday showed that employers added more jobs than economists had expected in May, while average hourly earnings also rose more than was forecast. Employers added 139,000 jobs last month, above estimates for a 130,000 increase. Average hourly earnings increased 0.4 per cent in May, above expectations for a 0.3 per cent increase. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 per cent, as expected. The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes was last up 5.1 basis points on the day at 4.446 per cent. Interest rate sensitive two-year note yields rose 3.8 basis points to 3.962 per cent. US stock index futures extended gains on Friday after a stronger-than-expected jobs report calmed worries over the health of the labour market in the wake of President Donald Trump's tariff war. A labour Department report showed nonfarm payrolls increased 139,000 in May, compared with estimates for a rise of 130,000, according to economists polled by Reuters. The unemployment rate stood at 4.2 per cent, in-line with a forecast of 4.2 per cent. At 08:30 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 232 points, or 0.57 per cent, S&P 500 E-minis were up 36.25 points, or 0.63 per cent, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 142.75 points, or 0.66 per cent Meanwhile the dollar was headed for a weekly loss on Friday, undermined by signs of fragility in the US economy and little progress on trade negotiations between Washington and its partners, ahead of a critical jobs report. The US nonfarm payrolls report expected later on will draw greater scrutiny after a slew of weaker-than-expected economic data this week underscored that President Donald Trump's tariffs were taking a toll on the economy. Analysts say the data so far has indicated that the US economy faces a period of increasing price pressures and slowing growth, which could complicate Federal Reserve monetary policy, even as Trump has been critical of the institution's cautious stance. Against a basket of currencies, the dollar edged up to 98.9, and was headed for a weekly loss of 0.5 per cent. The euro was taking a breather after hitting a 1-1/2-month top on Thursday following hawkish remarks from the European Central Bank. It last bought roughly $1.1423, down just 0.18 per cent on the day. Traders have pushed back expectations on the timing of the next rate cut, but continue to anticipate a 25-basis point reduction by year-end. Deutsche Bank's Mark Wall said he still expects 50 basis points worth of ECB rate cuts, adding 'it is still too early to judge the impact of the trade war, and the path of the trade war is in any case still inherently unpredictable.' Reflecting a struggling economy, data showed that German exports and industrial output fell more than expected in April. Most currencies had surged against the dollar late on Thursday, helped by news that Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke on a call for more than an hour, before paring some of their gains. Investors remain worried about US trade negotiations and the lack of progress in hashing out deals ahead of an early July deadline. The highly anticipated call between Trump and Xi also provided little clarity and the spotlight on it was quickly stolen by a public fallout between Trump and Elon Musk. Elsewhere, cryptocurrency dogecoin, often supported by Musk, was a touch firmer after falling to a one-month low on Thursday. US equity funds saw outflows for a third straight week through June 4, as concerns lingered over uncertainty surrounding US trade policies, while investors remained cautious ahead of a key jobs report due Friday. Reuters
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
US payrolls growth slows in May, unemployment rate steady
NEW YORK (Reuters) -U.S. job growth slowed in May, while the unemployment rate held steady, potentially giving the Federal Reserve a buffer to delay the resumption of interest rate cuts. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 139,000 jobs last month after rising by a downwardly revised 147,000 in April, the Labor Department said on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 130,000 jobs added last month after a previously reported 177,000 advance in April. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.2% and matched expectations. MARKET REACTION: STOCKS: S&P 500 E-minis added to gains and were up 47.25 points, or 0.79% BONDS: The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notesrose 6.3 basis points to 4.458%, the two-year note yield climbed 6 basis points to 3.987%FOREX: The dollar index extended gains a loss and was up 0.51% to 99.18, while the euro was down 0.45% at $1.1393 COMMENTS: BRIAN JACOBSEN, CHIEF ECONOMIST, ANNEX WEALTH MANAGEMENT, MENOMONEE FALLS, WISCONSIN "The rise in payrolls was better than expected, but the previous months were revised significantly lower, taking some sheen off this report. The diffusion index for manufacturing was abysmally low, showing that payroll gains are concentrated while losses are widespread. On its face, this shows an economy that's holding up under the weight of a trade war, but the details show plenty of cracks forming." PETER CARDILLO, CHIEF MARKET ECONOMIST, SPARTAN CAPITAL SECURITIES, NEW YORK 'Payrolls came in a little higher than consensus and more than I was looking for, but basically with the exception of hourly wages, the report really doesn't indicate that the Fed would be ready to do anything to help out the labor market. 'In fact, the rise in hourly wages by 0.4% - I don't want to say significant, but it's noticeable. And so that you know just means that the Fed stays on hold and the labor market, although there are definitely signs that it's cooling and obviously that's attributed to the trade war because many people are not hiring due to the uncertainties. 'Bottom line, it's a report that's not going to move the markets very much and I would, I would classify this as a mediocre report.' JAMIE COX MANAGING PARTNER, HARRIS FINANCIAL GROUP, RICHMOND VIRGINIA: "The labor market is strong, but cooling. I expect this report, with all its revisions to bring the Fed back into cutting mode in July. Wages are stable, for now, but that is likely to change in the coming months. "One of the biggest factors with labor is housing - the housing market is showing early signs of trouble, and a cooling labor market will make that worse." (Compiled by the Global Finance & Markets Breaking News team)
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street futures edge up ahead of jobs data; Tesla rebounds
By Kanchana Chakravarty and Sukriti Gupta (Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures nudged higher on Friday as investors awaited monthly payrolls data, while Tesla shares rebounded on signs of cooling tensions between CEO Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump. Shares of the electric carmaker rose 4.2% in premarket trading after plunging about 15% on Thursday following Trump's public feud with Musk, including threats to cut off government contracts with Musk's companies. Tesla shed about $150 billion in market value on Thursday, weighing on Wall Street indexes. White House aides scheduled a call between Trump and Musk for Friday, Politico reported, likely to ease the feuding after an extraordinary day of hostilities. A slew of soft economic data this week has raised concerns about an economic slowdown caused by trade uncertainties, with investors looking to May non-farm payrolls at 8:30 a.m. ET to gauge the labor market's health and the Federal Reserve's interest rate trajectory. "Whether it's the ISM surveys, the ADP figures, or the jobless claims, the tone is clearly one of a weakening economic momentum," said Julien Lafargue, chief market strategist at Barclays Private Bank. The payrolls data comes ahead of the Fed's policy meeting later this month where traders expect the U.S. central bank to keep interest rates unchanged. Traders currently expect two rate cuts by the end of this year, with the first 25 basis-point cut seen in September, according to data compiled by LSEG. On Thursday, investors also took stock of a leader-to-leader call between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping as they confronted after weeks of brewing trade tensions and a battle over critical minerals. The leaders, however, left key issues unresolved for future talks. U.S. equities rallied sharply in May, with the S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq scoring their biggest monthly percentage gains since November 2023, thanks to softening of Trump's harsh trade stance and upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 remains nearly 3.3% below record highs touched in February. At 7:00 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 112 points, or 0.26%, S&P 500 E-minis were higher 20.5 points, or 0.34%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis rose 72.25 points, or 0.33%. Most megacap and growth stocks rose in early trading. Shares of Amazon advanced 0.9%. Broadcom shares fell 2.9% after the networking and custom AI chipmaker's quarterly revenue forecast failed to impress investors. Lululemon shares lost 21.1% as the sportswear maker cut its annual profit target, citing higher costs from Trump's tariffs. Shares of Nike fell 1.3%. Shares of virtual document signing platform DocuSign fell 19.2% after first-quarter results.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street futures edge up ahead of jobs data; Tesla rebounds
(Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures edged up on Friday as investors awaited monthly payrolls data, while Tesla shares rebounded on signs of cooling tensions between CEO Elon Musk and U.S. President Donald Trump. Shares of the electric carmaker rose 5.4% in premarket trading after plunging about 15% on Thursday following Trump's public feud with Musk, including threats to cut off government contracts with Musk's companies. Tesla shed about $150 billion in market value on Thursday, weighing on Wall Street indexes. White House aides scheduled a call between Trump and Musk for Friday, Politico reported, likely to ease the feuding after an extraordinary day of hostilities. A slew of soft economic data this week has raised concerns about an economic slowdown caused by trade uncertainties, with investors looking to May non-farm payrolls at 8:30 a.m. ET to gauge the labor market's health and the Federal Reserve's interest rate trajectory. "Whether it's the ISM surveys, the ADP figures, or the jobless claims, the tone is clearly one of a weakening economic momentum," said Julien Lafargue, chief market strategist at Barclays Private Bank. The payrolls data comes ahead of the Fed's policy meeting later this month where traders expect the U.S. central bank to keep interest rates unchanged. Traders currently expect two rate cuts by the end of this year, with the first 25 basis-point cut seen in September, according to data compiled by LSEG. On Thursday, investors also took stock of a leader-to-leader call between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping as they confronted after weeks of brewing trade tensions and a battle over critical minerals. The leaders, however, left key issues unresolved for future talks. U.S. equities rallied sharply in May, with the S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq scoring their biggest monthly percentage gains since November 2023, thanks to softening of Trump's harsh trade stance and upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 remains nearly 3.3% below record highs touched in February. At 6:01 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 149 points, or 0.35%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 26.25 points, or 0.44%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 99.75 points, or 0.46%. Most megacap and growth stocks rose in early trading. Shares of Amazon gained nearly 1%. Broadcom shares fell 3.5% after the networking and custom AI chipmaker's quarterly revenue forecast failed to impress investors. Lululemon shares lost 21% as the sportswear maker cut annual profit target citing higher costs from Trump's tariffs. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street futures edge up as investors await key jobs data
(Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Thursday as investors looked ahead to the monthly jobs report to gauge the impact of President Donald Trump's trade policies on the labor market and the Federal Reserve's interest rate trajectory. Following Wednesday's weaker-than-expected U.S. private jobs and services sector data, Friday's non-farm payrolls report will come under sharp scrutiny as investors fear that Trump's erratic trade policies will drive a slowdown in economic growth. The data comes ahead of the Fed's policy decision later this month, where policymakers are widely expected to hold interest rates. Traders currently see at least two rate cuts by the end of this year, as per pricing in money markets. Despite continued calls from Trump to slash interest rates, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has opted to stand pat so far, awaiting further data to help dictate the policy decision as tariff volatility prevails. On Wednesday, Washington's doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum came to effect and it also marked Trump's deadline for trading partners to make their best offers to avoid other punishing import levies from taking effect in early July. Investors focused on tariff negotiations between Washington and trading partners, with Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping expected to speak sometime this week as tensions simmer between the world's two biggest economies. U.S. equities rallied sharply in May, with investors boosting the S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq to their biggest monthly percentage gain since November 2023, thanks to a softening of Trump's harsh trade stance and upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 remains nearly 3% below record highs touched in February. Data scheduled for Thursday include initial jobless claims and international trade data at 08:30 a.m. ET. U.S. central bank officials including Fed Board Governor Adriana Kugler, Fed Kansas City President Jeffrey Schmid and Fed Philadelphia President Patrick Harker are scheduled to speak later in the day. At 5:53 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 45 points, or 0.11%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 3 points, or 0.05%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 10 points, or 0.05% Most megacap and growth stocks were mixed in premarket trading. Tesla fell 1.7%. Among early movers, shares of MongoDB jumped nearly 15% after the software company gave an upbeat annual forecast and reported quarterly results above estimates.
