US stock futures tread water as nonfarm payrolls approach via Investing.com
Investing.com– U.S. stock index futures were slightly lower in holiday-shortened trading on Thursday evening, with more focus on key non-farm payrolls data for more clues on interest rates.
While markets were closed for the Independence Day holiday, Wall Street indexes were sitting at record highs earlier this week as soft economic readings boosted bets that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates in September.
But some hawkish signals from the Fed somewhat dispel this view.
was stable at 5,588.50 points, while it fell 0.1% to 20,387.25 points at 19:16 ET (13:16 GMT). rose slightly to 39,655.0 points.
Non-farm payrolls are awaited for additional value indicators
Wall Street is expected to remain largely empty ahead of key data due on Friday.
The reading is expected to show some cooling in the job market through June, and comes after a string of weaker-than-expected labor market readings this week.
But payroll data surprisingly rose for seven of the past nine months, amid continued strength in the labor market. The trend kept investors cautious ahead of Friday’s reading.
A sufficiently cooling labor market is a key consideration for the Fed in lowering interest rates – a scenario that has yet to play out.
Wall Street is focused on the big upside amid reduced expectations
But even cautiously ahead of the payrolls data, Wall Street indexes hit record highs on Wednesday amid growing bets that the Fed will cut rates in September.
It rose 0.5% to 5,537.02 points, and rose 0.9% to 18,188.30 points. It decreased by 0.1% to 39,308.0 points.
Weak readings and readings, accompanied by mild easing, boosted hopes that the US economy is recovering, giving the Fed enough confidence to start cutting rates.
Dealers are pricing in a 66.3% chance of a 25-point drop in September, down from 68.4% seen the previous day but up from 59.5% seen last week.
Rate cut bets cooled slightly after minutes of the Fed’s June meeting showed that policymakers still need more progress in reducing inflation before they cut. Other Fed officials have also been seen calling for more rate hikes.
