Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., November 22, 2024.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock futures were near the flatline Thursday night as investors awaited key payrolls data.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 21 points, or less than 0.1%. S&P 500 futures edged slightly lower, while Nasdaq 100 futures shed 0.1%.
Several companies posted strong quarterly results after the closing bell and saw their shares take off. Ulta Beauty jumped 12% after posting higher-than-expected earnings and revenue for the fiscal third quarter, and software makers GitLab and DocuSign gained 6% and 14%, respectively, on quarterly beats.
Investors are now turning to Friday’s jobs report, anticipating it will provide a clearer picture into the health of the domestic labor market and shape the Federal Reserve’s rate decision at its Dec. 17-18 policy meeting. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect that nonfarm payrolls increased by 214,000 in November, which would mark a huge hike from October’s gain of just 12,000.
“With market expectations for solid rebound in payrolls, an even stronger print above expectations could force the Fed to think twice about the pace of rate cutting next year,” Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist at Allianz Investment Management said.
Given the continued strength of the U.S. economy, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has previously said that policymakers don’t need to be “in a hurry to lower rates.”
Stocks closed Thursday’s session lower, retreating from records the major indexes hit in the previous session. Week to date, the S&P 500 is up 0.7%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite has gained 2.5%. The 30-stock Dow is down 0.3% in the period.
