Last Updated: 4:02 PM EST
Stock indices finished today’s trading session in the green. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 1.01%, 0.62%, and 0.41%, respectively. Earlier today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its JOLTs Job Openings report, which helps measure job vacancies in the U.S. The number came in at 8.14 million job openings for May, above the expected 7.96 million.
This is higher than the previous report, which saw 7.919 million job openings. Interestingly, job openings have been in an overall decline since peaking at 11.855 million back in May 2022’s report.
It’s important to remember that this data is for May, thus making it a lagging indicator. Since then, many companies have announced that they will reduce their workforce in order to cut costs, which provides evidence that this downward trend is likely to continue.
In addition, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell made comments today about inflation. Speaking at a central banking forum in Sintra, Portugal, Powell said, “We’ve made quite a bit of progress in bringing inflation back down to our target,” but added that he wants more confidence that inflation is moving sustainably towards 2% before easing policy. He noted that while inflation is easing, rate cuts could reverse the progress made if done too soon.
Earlier this year, markets expected multiple rate cuts but now anticipate only two, with the Fed’s June meeting indicating just one cut planned. When asked about a potential September rate cut, Powell declined to specify a date.
First Published: 5:08 AM EST
U.S. futures inched lower on Tuesday morning after a strong trading session yesterday. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) were down by about 0.48%, 0.38%, and 0.3%, respectively, at 4:44 a.m. EST, July 2.
All three major indices — the Nasdaq 100, the S&P 500, and the Dow Jones — closed higher on Monday. The rally was fueled by strong gains in mega-cap tech stocks, such as Tesla (TSLA), Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN), and Microsoft (MSFT).
In major stock-market news, Tesla stock gained 6.1% ahead of the company’s second-quarter delivery numbers. Boeing (BA) rose 2.5% after the company announced a deal to acquire Spirit AeroSystems (SPR). On the other hand, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and Paramount Global (PARAA) fell 4.6% and 2.4%, respectively, amid reports of a potential merger between their streaming platforms.
On the economic front, investors are looking forward to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaking at the European Central Bank forum in Portugal today. Further, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) for May will be released today. Economists expect the number of job openings last month to have fallen to 7.9 million, from 8.1 million in April.
Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year treasury yield is down, floating near 4.46% at the time of writing. Also, the WTI crude oil futures are trending higher, hovering near $83.72 per barrel as of the last check.
Elsewhere, European markets opened lower today as investors awaited the latest inflation data from the Eurozone.
Asia Pacific Markets Traded Higher on Tuesday
Most of the Asia-Pacific indices were trading higher today. This surge was prompted by impressive data indicating that China’s factory activity reached its highest level in over three years in June.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite indices closed higher by 0.29% and 0.08%, respectively. At the same time, Japan’s Nikkei and Topix indices traded up by 1.12% and 1.15%, respectively. However, China’s Shenzhen Component index declined by 0.97%.
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