The most recent U.S. jobs report caused stock futures to decline Friday morning as investors evaluated it.
One third, or 100 points, were taken out of futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Futures on the S&P 500 dropped by 0.2%, while those on the Nasdaq 100 dropped 4.6%.
When November’s nonfarm payrolls report revealed an unexpected decline in unemployment, futures prices moved in tandem with yields. The 3.7% unemployment rate was lower than the 3.9% predicted rate. With 199,000 new jobs added in November, the economy beat out October’s 150,000 job addition and the Dow Jones prediction of 190,000.
With multiple reports released throughout the week preceding Friday’s figures, investors have been concentrating on the jobs statistics. 220,000 unemployment claims were recorded initially on Thursday, while 1.861 million claims were reported continuously.
“Investors are holding onto every piece of data to see if the economy can maintain this Goldilocks condition, where the labour market cools off just enough to relieve pressure on salaries without tipping the market into recession,” Homrich Berg chief investment officer Stephanie Lang said to CNBC.
Source (CNBC)
