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Stock market news live updates: Stocks futures waver ahead of December jobs report

Alexandra Semenova · Reporter
Fri, January 6, 2023 at 7:51 AM EST

U.S. stock futures zigzagged ahead of the open Friday as key government employment data kept investors on edge.

The Labor Department will publish its jobs report for December at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect a payroll gain of 200,000 jobs last month, per Bloomberg consensus estimates, while unemployment likely stayed at 3.7%.

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Why bad news is bad news for the stock market: Morning Brief

Alexandra Semenova · Reporter
Fri, January 6, 2023 at 5:21 AM EST · 5 min read

This article first appeared in the Morning Brief. Get the Morning Brief sent directly to your inbox every Monday to Friday by 6:30 a.m. ET. Subscribe

Investors have heard the adage a lot lately — good news is bad news, and vice versa. ... In today's economy, positive data on job growth, manufacturing, and consumer spending have been perceived as a sign the Federal Reserve will remain aggressive in raising interest rates to slow growth and inflation.

And higher rates are bad for investors. ... See Thursday's action for the latest example. After the ADP's private payroll report showed employers added a robust 235,000 jobs last month and unemployment claims fell to a three-month low last week —seemingly good news about the economy — stocks sank.

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The labor market has been persistently tight, with job openings still high and unemployment still low. ... And Friday's jobs report is forecast to be no exception — according to data from Bloomberg, economists expect 200,000 jobs were created last month with the unemployment rate set to hold at 3.7%.

Still, some cracks are starting to emerge. Less than one week into the new year, a flurry of companies including Amazon (AMZN), Salesforce (CRM), and Vimeo (VMEO) have announced fresh job cuts. ... Though as Bank of America economist Michael Gapen pointed out, tech layoffs may not show up in the employment data for as long as laid off workers are receiving severance. ... But so long as the economy appears strong, in Roberts' view investor fears about how this recession does unfold are likely to grow.

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