(Bloomberg) — Stocks saw widespread gains on Friday following strong earnings from technology giants and as investors anticipated a US jobs report that is expected to show a further cooling in the labor market, boosting hopes for interest-rate cuts.
Wall Street was set to build on Thursday’s gains, with contracts for the S&P 500 up 0.5% and those for the Nasdaq 100 rising 1%. Meta Platforms Inc. surged 15% in after-hours trading and Amazon.com Inc. rallied after exceeding quarterly profit expectations. Apple Inc. slipped after its earnings showed weakness in China.
In Europe, the Stoxx 600 index was lifted by positive earnings news, with Swedish appliance maker Electrolux AG jumping 6% and Vallourec SACA surging 9% in Paris. The situation was more mixed in Asia, where key Chinese benchmarks trimmed steep declines in a session marked by wild swings.
Investors will analyze the monthly US jobs report due later on Friday for signs of further cooling in the labor market that might encourage the Federal Reserve to ease borrowing costs. Employers are expected to have added workers at a slower pace in January, while Bloomberg economists see the unemployment rate edging up to 3.8%, from 3.7% in December.
Treasuries were steady after an advance on Thursday that led to a three basis points drop in the 10-year yield. An index of the dollar slipped.
During Friday’s volatile session in China, the Shanghai Composite gauge dropped almost 4% as healthcare and tech stocks slid, with some market watchers attributing the losses to selling ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday. It later reduced the decline to 1.5%.
“China needs to address its property crisis before any chance of regaining investor confidence,” said Kieran Calder, head of Asia equity research at Union Bancaire Privee. “Until this happens, it’s a market for short-term traders.”
Meanwhile, Japan’s Aozora Bank Ltd. fell 16%, taking its weekly decline to over 30%, after the firm said that it would report its first loss in 15 years due to bad loans tied to US property.
US investors will continue to closely monitor developments in regional banks. An index of US regional financials is on pace for its worst week since May last year, during the fallout of the banking crisis. New York Community Bancorp shares closed at their lowest since 2000 on Thursday, sinking 11% and adding to the prior day’s record 38% plunge. NYCB this week surprised investors by reducing its dividend, posting a quarterly loss and increasing loan-loss provisions.
Elsewhere, Oil halted a two-day drop while gold was little changed. Bloomberg News reported negotiations are progressing for a deal to pause the Israel-Hamas war and release civilian hostages.
Some of the main moves in markets:
StocksThe Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.4% as of 8:24 a.m. London time
S&P 500 futures rose 0.5%
Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.9%
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.7%
The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.9%
Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
The euro was little changed at $1.0881
The Japanese yen fell 0.2% to 146.66 per dollar
The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1894 per dollar
The British pound rose 0.1% to $1.2760
Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin fell 0.2% to $43,008.28
Ether rose 0.3% to $2,310.97
Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries was little changed at 3.89%
Germany’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 2.17%
Britain’s 10-year yield advanced four basis points to 3.79%
Commodities
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.–With assistance from Abhishek Vishnoi, Ishika Mookerjee and Richard Henderson.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
