U.S. stock futures along with oil prices marched higher ahead of two key pieces of data Tuesday morning: the JOLTS job openings survey and factory orders data.
Before the opening bell, futures tied to the S&P 500 (^GSPC) ticked up 0.4% and futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) gained 0.2%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) added 0.4%.
Oil prices moved higher, with WTI crude oil — the U.S. benchmark — trading above $81 a barrel. Oil is now back in its four-month trading range after OPEC+ announced it would slash output by 1.16 million barrels per day.
The S&P 500 closed up 0.4% on Monday. The biggest laggard was the Nasdaq 100, which fell 0.27%. Bond yields were down as manufacturing activity slumped to the lowest level since May 2020, signaling further declines could be coming as credit conditions tighten.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said Monday that the continued strength in the labor market gives the Fed room to fight inflation. Bullard also commented on OPEC’s decision to cut output, suggesting it could potentially make the Fed’s job of lowering inflation more challenging as oil prices increase.
Separately, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook also highlighted the continued tightness in the labor market.
“We are still going to see inflation from that, but we’ve seen wage gains moderating quite a bit,” she said.
Still, the Federal Reserve has stuck with inflation as its top concern, even amid the recent banking turmoil that has showed signs of easing.
“The Fed rate expected for the next meeting was largely flat against this backdrop, climbing a modest 1.6 basis-points to 4.973% with a 63% chance priced in for a 25 basis-point hike next month,” Jim Reid and colleagues at Deutsche Bank wrote in note to clients.
However, the recent banking troubles triggered by the failures at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank are “not over yet,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Tuesday.
In his closely watched annual letter to shareholders, Dimon outlined the damages of financial system turmoil on all banks and urged lawmakers to not “overreact” with more regulation.
Elsewhere, Credit Suisse chairman Axel Lehmann apologized for the bank’s failure to save the institution as the firm had been draining deposits for months.
Meanwhile, under the current backdrop, the rally in equities will likely waver given the recent bank failures. The oil surprise and a slowdown in growth could send stocks back to their low levels seen in 2022, said JPMorgan strategist Marko Kolanovic.
In single-stock moves, shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings (AMC) plunged Tuesday morning after a settlement would allow AMC convert APE preferred shares into common AMC stock.
And Disney’s feud with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis escalated. CEO Bob Iger called the governor’s retaliation “anti-business” and “anti-Florida.” Shares of Disney (DIS) ticked up before the opening bell.
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Dani Romero is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @daniromerotv
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Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock-market-news-today-live-updates-april-4-2023-120152032.html