U.S. equity futures were mixed on Friday, after a subdued June jobs report appeared to ease worries over imminent Federal Reserve rate hikes. Investors welcomed signs of slower hiring, helping equity markets anticipate less restrictive monetary policy in the near term.
At 4:16 (Bangkok Time), futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average pared earlier gains to 0.3% lower, while S&P 500 futures gained 0.25% and Nasdaq 100 futures jumped 283.25 points or 0.96%.
Thursday’s regular session closed with the Dow posting a record high at 52,900.07, following a rise of 594.83 points, or 1.14%. The S&P 500 finished essentially unchanged, while the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.8% to 25,832.67 under pressure from weaker semiconductor shares.
The latest employment report showed private sector payrolls expanded by 98,000 in June, while Nonfarm data showed 57,000 new jobs added to the U.S. economy, both undershot the May figures and analyst expectations. Although job growth is slowing, the unemployment rate remains near 4.3%, indicating continued labor market resilience.
Earlier in the week, Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh commented that inflationary pressures had receded, which further contributed to diminished bets on a rate hike at the Fed’s upcoming meeting. For investors, whether a slower pace of hiring will be enough to hold off further tightening remains a key focus, particularly for rate-sensitive sectors like banks, real estate, and smaller-sized companies.
Industrial activity, as measured by the ISM Manufacturing PMI, remained positive at 53.3. Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries approached 4.5%, signaling higher borrowing costs for mortgages and corporate debt.
