Stock Market Update

The S&P 500 futures are up 15 points and are trading 0.3% above fair value, the Nasdaq 100 futures are up 73 points and are trading 0.3% above fair value, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are up 60 points and are trading 0.2% above fair value.

Stock futures are higher in front of the market-moving September Employment Situation report at 8:30 ET. Mega cap stocks are higher ahead of the open, supporting the early upside moves. 

The positive bias also relates to news that the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the Master Contract until January 15, 2025 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues.

Treasury yields are slightly higher in front of the jobs report, which could impact the Fed's thinking about rate cuts in the near term. The 10-yr yield is up two basis points to 3.87% and the 2-yr yield is up two basis points to 3.73%.

In corporate news:

• Exxon Mobil (XOM 123.37, +0.79, +0.6%): details items that will impact Q3 results; changes in gas prices negatively impacting Q3 upstream earnings by $(0.2)-0.2 bln
• Rivian Automotive (RIVN 9.81, -0.97, -9.0%): in Q3 produced 13,157 vehicles at its manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois and delivered 10,018 vehicles during the same period
• Albemarle (ALB 99.21, +4.90, +5.2%): higher on news that Rio Tinto is mulling lithium acquisitions, according to The Australian
• Cisco (CSCO 52.47, +0.04, +0.1%): aiming to make investment in CoreWeave, according to Bloomberg
• Spirit Airlines (SAVE 1.43, -0.81, -36.2%): mulls bankruptcy filing, according to WSJ

Reviewing overnight developments:

• Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region ended the week on a mixed note while markets in China remained closed for holidays. Japan's Nikkei: +0.2% (-3.0% for the week), Hong Kong's Hang Seng: +2.8% (+10.2% for the week), China's Shanghai Composite: HOLIDAY (+8.1% for the week), India's Sensex: -1.0% (-4.5% for the week), South Korea's Kospi: +0.3% (-3.0% for the week), Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: -0.7% (-0.7% for the week).
  • In economic data:
    • India's September Services PMI 57.7 (expected 58.9; last 60.9)
    • Singapore's August Retail Sales 0.7% m/m (last 3.1%); 0.6% yr/yr (last 1.0%)
    • Hong Kong's September Manufacturing PMI 50.0 (last 49.4)
    • Australia's August Home Loans 0.7% m/m (last 2.5%) and August Invest Housing Finance 1.4% m/m (last 5.1%)
  • In news:
    • HSBC speculated that China will announce large fiscal stimulus early next week.
    • Former Bank of Japan policymaker Masaka said that the central bank will continue looking for the right time for the next rate hike.
    • Germany voted against new tariffs on electric vehicle imports from China to the EU.
• Major European indices are looking to end a down week on a mostly higher note. STOXX Europe 600: +0.1% (-2.2% week-to-date), Germany's DAX: +0.4% (-2.1% week-to-date), U.K.'s FTSE 100: -0.4% (-0.9% week-to-date), France's CAC 40: +0.5% (-3.6% week-to-date), Italy's FTSE MIB: +0.8% (-3.8% week-to-date), Spain's IBEX 35: +0.2% (-2.7% week-to-date).
  • In economic data:
    • U.K.'s Q2 Housing Equity Withdrawal -GBP14.7 bln (expected -GBP20.3 bln; last -GBP23.0 bln)
    • France's August Industrial Production 1.4% m/m (expected 0.3%; last 0.2%)
    • Italy's August Retail Sales -0.5% m/m (expected 0.2%; last 0.5%); 0.8% yr/yr (last 0.9%). Q2 Public Deficit 3.4% (last 8.4%)
    • Spain's August Industrial Production -0.1% m/m (expected 0.1%; last -0.4%)
    • Swiss September Unemployment Rate 2.6%, as expected (last 2.5%)
  • In news:
    • Germany voted against new tariffs on electric vehicle imports from China to the EU while France, Italy, Greece, and Portugal voted in favor. A final decision will be made in early November.
    • Italy's Finance Minister Giorgetti said that the government is planning a windfall levy on corporations to reduce the budget deficit and that a 1.0% growth target for this year is realistic.