All three benchmarks are higher ahead of the opening bell
Following yesterday's rebound, stock futures stand notably higher as Wall Street digests what kind of impact August's jobs report will have on the Federal Reserve's aggressive rate hike campaign. According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, nonfarm payrolls rose 315,000 in August -- nearly matching economists' estimates of 318,000 -- while the unemployment rate ticked slightly higher to 3.7%. This key reading is one of the last pieces of data the Fed will see before its September meeting.
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5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.31 million call contracts traded on Thursday, and over 1.1 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.84, while the 21-day moving average dropped to 0.66.
- Lululemon Athletica Inc (NASDAQ:LULU) is up 9.4% before the bell, after the athletic apparel company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for its second quarter. The company chalked the results up to strong sales momentum. Still, LULU is nearly 25% lower year-to-date.
- Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) is marginally higher ahead of the open, sporting a 0.5% lead after naming Laxman Narasimhan as its new CEO, effective Oct. 1. Previously, Narasimhan was CEO of Lysol and Reckitt Benckiser, and served in executive roles at PepsiCo (PEP). Longer term, SBUX sports a 27.3% year-over-year deficit.
- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (NASDAQ:BBBY) revealed a number of steps it's taking to shore up its finances, a move that's putting pressure on the shares as BBBY was last seen down 3.6% in electronic trading. Specifically, the company received $500 million in new financing and will close around 150 stores. The popular meme stock earned no less than two price-target adjustments, is heading for its fourth-straight daily loss, and stands 40.3% lower in 2022.
- Today features average hourly earnings, the labor force participation rate a core capital equipment orders revision, and factory orders.
Overseas Markets Eye Stateside Jobs Data
Asian markets settled mostly lower on Friday, as investors awaited U.S. jobs data. Also capturing their attention was South Korea’s consumer price index, which rose 5.7% in August, missing analysts’ expectations of a 6.1% pop. Pacing the laggards was Hong Kong’s Hang Seng with a 0.7% drop, while South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.3%. Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei settled slightly below breakeven with a 0.04% loss, while China’s Shanghai Composite managed to stay in positive territory with a marginal 0.05% gain.
European markets are mostly higher, as investors eye nonfarm payrolls in the U.S. The euro zone industrial produce price growth rose a higher-than-expected 37.9% in July, while produce prices rose 4%, likely due to higher energy costs. Nevertheless, the German DAX was last seen up 1.4%, London’s FTSE 100 is 0.8% higher, and France’s CAC 40 is 0.6% higher.