Investors are anticipating the Friday jobs report, leading to minimal changes in stock futures

Stock futures showed little movement on Friday morning as investors shifted their focus towards the upcoming June jobs report and its potential impact on Federal Reserve policy. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were mostly unchanged, while Nasdaq-100 futures experienced a slight decline of 0.2%. Shares of Levi Strauss dropped by 7% after the denim company revised its profit outlook for the year.

The key economic event of the week, the Labor Department's June payrolls report, is eagerly awaited. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect an increase of 240,000 jobs, indicating a slowdown compared to May's gain of 339,000 positions.

Investors remain watchful for signals of further tightening by the Federal Reserve. According to the FedWatch tool from CME Group, traders currently predict a 91% likelihood of a rate hike at the Fed's July meeting. During their June meeting, policymakers hinted at the possibility of two more rate hikes in 2023.

Kathy Jones, chief fixed income strategist for the Schwab Center for Financial Research, noted that while the Fed signals a willingness to continue tightening, market expectations are not fully aligned with the projected rate hikes. This discrepancy between the Fed's dot plot and market expectations has narrowed but not closed completely.

On Thursday, the major stock averages declined following the release of ADP's data, which showed that private sector employers added 497,000 jobs in June, surpassing economists' estimate of 220,000. The ADP results raised concerns about the Fed's future actions. Bond yields increased, with the 2-year Treasury rate reaching its highest level since 2007, indicating sensitivity to the central bank's policies. Stocks also declined, with the Dow dropping over 1%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each slid around 0.8%.

Overall, it appears that the three major stock averages are heading towards a weekly loss, with the S&P 500 down approximately 0.9%, the Nasdaq on track for a 0.8% decline, and the Dow underperforming with a projected loss of 1.4%.


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