(CercleFinance.com) – Wall Street is moving on an indecisive note on Thursday, the latest indicators on the job market having notably revived fears that the Federal Reserve will refrain from lowering its rates in March.
One hour after the opening, the Dow Jones managed to increase by 0.4% to 37,591 points, while the Nasdaq Composite fell by 0.1% to 14,577.1 points.
According to the monthly survey published by ADP, the private sector in the United States generated 164,000 new jobs in December, a figure both higher than the consensus (120,000) and that of the previous month (103,000).
The Department of Labor reported, for its part, 202,000 new registrations for unemployment benefits in the United States during the week of December 25, a figure down by 18,000 compared to the previous week.
From a market perspective, this strong data – which speaks to the strength of the jobs market – reinforces the sentiment that Fed rates are likely to remain at their current levels for the immediate future.
The probability of a 25 basis point rate cut by the central bank has increased to 62% today, compared to 96% at the start of the week, according to the CME Group’s Fedwatch tool.
In the bond compartment, Treasury yields are starting to rise again, with the ten-year yield flirting again, at 3.99%, with the psychological threshold of 4%.
Several warnings on results also came as a reminder of the difficulties of the current situation.
Conagra Brands fell more than 2% after the food group lowered its annual forecasts, citing a ‘still difficult macroeconomic environment’.
Mobileye, specializing in autonomous driving technologies, fell by 23% after issuing a warning on its 2024 results due to a high level of stocks among its customers.
On the currency side, the dollar confirms its recent bout of weakness, with the euro trying to return to contact with 1.0960, while the oil market is taking a break as the release of crude stocks approaches.
After its surge the day before, due in particular to the disruptions affecting maritime trade at the Panama Canal and in the Red Sea, American light crude (West Texas Intermediate, WTI) consolidated slightly by 0.1% to 72.4 dollars.
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