U.S. Stocks May Give Back Ground Following Recent Strength

After moving notably higher over the past few sessions, stocks may give back ground in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a lower open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by 0.5 percent.

Traders may look to cash in on the recent strength in the markets amid lingering concerns about inflation, interest rates and a potential global recession.

Potentially adding to concerns about aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, the Labor Department released a report showing stronger than expected U.S. job growth in the month of June.

The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 372,000 jobs in June after surging by a revised 384,000 jobs in May.

Economists had expected employment to increase by 268,000 jobs compared to the addition of 390,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report showed the unemployment remained at 3.6 percent for the fourth month in a row, matching economist estimates.

Treasury yields have spiked in reaction to the report, with the yield on the benchmark ten-year note extending the strong upward move seen over the two previous sessions.

Shortly after the start of trading, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on wholesale inventories in the month of May. Wholesale inventories are expected to jump by 2.0 percent.

U.S. stocks rallied sharply on Thursday, extending recent gains, as investors indulged in some strong buying in several sectors amid hopes the central bank would gradually start lightening its policy stance later this year.

The major averages all ended the session with strong gains, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq extending their winning streak to a fourth session.

The Dow ended with a gain of 346.87 points or 1.1 percent at 31,384.55. The S&P 500 advanced 57.54 points or 1.5 percent to 3,902.62, while the Nasdaq surged 259.49 points or 2.3 percent to settle at 11,621.35.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are turning in a mixed performance on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 0.7 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.4 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.7 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.67 to $102.06 a barrel after surging $4.20 to $102.73 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after inching up $3.20 to $1,739.70 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are edging down $1.70 to $1,738 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 136.50 yen versus the 136.01 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0123 compared to yesterday’s $1.0160.

Source: Read Full Article