Here are the top news, trends, and analysis investors need to start their trading day:
1. S&P 500 looks taller in front of the job report
A trader works on the New York Stock Exchange on August 27, 2021.
Source: NYSE
US stock futures and 10-year Treasury bond yields rose ahead of the government’s monthly employment report on Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq posted record closings on Thursday as weekly initial jobless claims reached their lowest level since the early days of the Covid pandemic in March 2020. The Dow Jones Industrial Average broke a three-day losing streak, ending 0.5% from its last record close last month. Prior to Friday’s open, the Dow was flat for the week while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were higher for the week.
August 2 Non-agricultural payroll increased by 720,000, 5.2% unemployment rate seen
Pedestrians walk past a “Now Hiring” sign outside a store in Arlington, Virginia on August 16, 2021.
Olivier Douliery | AFP | Getty Images
Economists expect the Labor Department’s August job report to show 720,000 additional payrolls outside of agriculture and a fall in the unemployment rate to 5.2%. The report will provide critical guidance to the Federal Reserve in deciding when to start reducing its bond purchases. At the central bank’s annual economic summit last week, Fed chairman Jerome Powell said he still wanted more progress in the job market before he eased the throttling. In July, the economy created 943,000 new jobs as the unemployment rate fell to 5.4%.
3. Bitcoin again exceeds USD 50,000; Ether is approaching $ 4,000 and all-time highs
A visual representation of Bitcoin.
STR | NurPhoto via Getty Images
Bitcoin was back trading above $ 50,000 on Friday after briefly exceeding that level late last month. The world’s largest cryptocurrency hit an all-time high of over $ 64,000 in April, but sold out heavily in June and July, even falling below $ 30,000 at times. But Bitcoin has been rising steadily since mid-July. Ether, the second largest digital coin, traded just under $ 4,000 on Friday. Ether rose above that level to an all-time high of nearly $ 4,200 in May. The entire global crypto market, 40% of which is Bitcoin, is valued at nearly $ 2.3 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
4. Senator Manchin rejects the Dems’ $ 3.5 trillion plan to combat climate change and poverty
Senator Joe Manchin, DW. Va., Speaks to reporters as he departs Washington for a Senate vote on Tuesday, July 13, 2021.
Caroline Brehman | CQ Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images
West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin urges his Democratic Party leaders to “pause” their deliberations on a massive $ 3.5 trillion spending bill. The Democrats want to pass the measure, which would invest in climate policy and social programs, in the coming weeks without Republican support. When the vote last month to move the $ 3.5 trillion budget move forward, Manchin and Arizona Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema signaled that if the price were not lowered, they would oppose the final bill. The Democrats have a majority in the 50-50 Senate because the Vice President breaks the tie.
5. Biden visits Ida Damage in Louisiana days after the storm in the northeast
Highway 440 flooded in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States, on September 2, 2021 when hundreds of cars got stuck in the water when Hurricane Ida caused flash floods on the east coast.
Tayfun Coskun | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
President Joe Biden will visit Louisiana Friday to investigate the damage to land following the crash of Hurricane Ida. The storm killed at least 13 people in the Gulf Coast region and at least 46 in the northeast. The remains of Ida dropped devastating rains in five states, including New York and New Jersey, Wednesday and early Thursday. The highest death toll was in New Jersey, where at least 23 people died, many of whom drowned after their vehicles caught flash floods.
– The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow all market activity like a pro on CNBC Pro. Get the latest on the pandemic with coronavirus coverage from CNBC.
