Treasury yields are moving lower in response to the cooling labor market
Treasury yields are lower this morning, amid renewed hopes of interest rate cuts after jobs data. The unemployment rate rose to higher-than-expected 4.1% in June, and while the 206,000 jobs added came in slightly above estimates, wage growth tapered off, per the Labor Department.
With a tighter labor market and wages cooling, Wall Street appears on the verge of a goldilocks market, where the economy isn't expanding or contracting by a large margin. At last check, futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX), and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are all looking to open slightly higher.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- 2 mining stocks to avoid this quarter.
- Delivery update boosts Tesla stock.
- Plus, Macy's fresh offer; SHEL fights impairment woes; and COIN falls with Bitcoin.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.2 million call contracts and 648,855 put contracts exchanged on Wednesday. The single-session equity put/call dropped to 0.70, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.67.
- Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management reportedly raised their buyout offer of Macy's Inc (NYSE:M) to $24.80 from $24. The retail stock is 7.9% higher in premarket trading, as it looks to reverse some of its 10.8% year-to-date deficit.
- After temporarily suspending construction at its Rotterdam facility and divesting its Singapore plant, Shell PLC (NYSE: SHEL) expects to pay as much as $2 billion in impairment charges. Shares are up 1.2% before the bell, and boast a 27.3% year-over-year lead.
- Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ:COIN) stock is down 4.1% ahead of the open, as Mt. Gox's repayments to creditors pressure Bitcoin (BTC) to levels not seen since February. COIN still sports a 206.2% six-month lead, and is also up 29.3% this year.
- Plenty of economic data due out this holiday-shortened week.
Asian Stocks Edge Higher; Nikkei Tops 41,000
Stocks in Asia finished the session mostly higher, led by a 0.7% gain from China’s Shanghai Composite. South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.5%, after Samsung Electronics announced its operating profit will increase 15-fold in the second quarter. In Japan, the Nikkei topped the 41,000 level for the first time ever, but pulled back from record highs to finish flat, after the country’s household spending fell 1.8% in May. Rounding out the region, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng tacked on 0.01%.
Traders in Europe are focused on the general election in the U.K., where the Labour Party secured a landslide victory. In response, London’s FTSE 100 was last seen 0.2% higher. Elsewhere, Germany’s DAX sports a 0.06% lead, and France’s CAC 40 is down 0.9%.