A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Edge Higher; All Eyes On Jobs Report

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade ahead of all important jobs report. The Dow Jones jumped more than 100 points on Wednesday, while the S&P 500 registered another record closing high in the earlier session.

US jobs report for June is scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. Analysts expect nonfarm payrolls increasing 703,000 for June following lower-than-expected rise of 559,000 in the previous month. The unemployment rate is expected to drop to 5.6% from 5.8%. International trade report for May is scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, while data on factory orders for May will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 26 points to 34,540.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 3.25 points 4,314.00. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 26.50 points to 14,575.00.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 33,679,480 with around 605,010 deaths. India reported a total of at least 30,458,250 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 18,622,300 cases.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.2% to trade at $75.66 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.1% to trade at $75.13 a barrel. Natural gas in storage rose 76 billion cubic feet for the week ended June 25, the Energy Information Administration said. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is scheduled for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.2% and STOXX Europe 600 Index climbed 0.6%. The French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.4%, London’s FTSE 100 gained 0.5% while German DAX 30 gained 0.5%. French government budget deficit rose slightly to EUR 118.8 billion in January-May, from EUR 117.9 billion in the year-ago period. Spain’s unemployment declined by 166,911 from a month ago to 3.61 million in June.

Asian markets traded mixed today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.27%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 1.93% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index dipped 1.95%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.6% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.1%.

Broker Recommendation

Raymond James initiated coverage on Thor Industries, Inc. THO with an Underperform rating.

Thor Industries shares rose 3.2% to close at $116.20 on Thursday.

Check out other major ratings here

Breaking News

• Outset Medical, Inc. OM disclosed that Rebecca Chambers will step down as Chief Financial Officer. The company named Nabeel Ahmed, current Vice President, Finance, as Interim CFO. The company also said it expects Q2 net revenue of $24 million to $25 million.
• Li Auto Inc LI reported a surge in quarterly deliveries. The company’s quarterly deliveries climbed 166.1% year-over-year to 17,575 vehicles — a newly monthly record. Deliveries rose 39.7% on a sequential basis.
• Horace Mann Educators Corporation HMN said it raised its 2021 earnings guidance from $3.00 to $3.20 per share to $3.50 to $3.70 per share.
• BioSig Technologies Inc BSGM reported a proposed public offering of common stock. However, size of the offering was not disclosed.

Check out other breaking news here