Stocks are edging higher as investors anticipate a strong
monthly jobs report about half an hour from now.
Futures on the S&P 500 are up by more than 0.2 percent,
following a gain of almost 0.75 percent yesterday. Overseas markets
are strong across the board, especially in Europe after the
continent's central bank expressed further willingness to prop up
debt prices. France's CAC-40 rose 1 percent while the German DAX
climbed by 0.75 percent.
Economists forecast that U.S. payrolls grew by 165,000 last month.
Most of the labor data has been strong this week, with initial
jobless claims below expectations and more hiring than anticipated
in the ADP private-sector employment report. (See
related story
)
The news comes against a backdrop of a strong rally in equity
markets as fear of a crisis in Europe unwinds and money is
reallocated from the bond market. The S&P 500 has spent the
last month consolidating above its highs from 2008, marking a
potential recovery from the subprime-mortgage crash that has
haunted investors for the last four years. A strong jobs report
today could bolster perceptions that the crisis is finally over.
Currencies and commodities are painting a more cautious picture
than stocks. Oil is falling about 1 percent and continues to
struggle after hitting resistance at its 200-day moving average
last month. Most agricultural foodstuffs are also down by more than
half a percent.
Metals are showing more strength, with copper little changed.
Silver and gold are posting small losses but remain near the tops
of their recent ranges.
The euro is also down slightly against the U.S. dollar, while the
Australian dollar is edging higher. The Japanese yen is up modestly
against all counterparts.
In company-specific news, earnings have remained less than
stellar--especially in the technology sector. Social-gaming company
Zynga, enterprise-software maker Datalink and defense-systems
contractor Mercury Computer Systems all fell more than 10 percent
in extended trading after issuing weak guidance. The moves followed
similar news recently from Hewlett-Packard, Informatica, and
Xyratex, which makes disk-drive parts.