|
The
Labor Department's report at 8:30 a.m. ET is expected to show
the number of Americans filing for state unemployment benefits
increased last week to 222,000 from 211,000 a week ago,
indicating a cooling labor market.
Also due for release is the final estimate of third-quarter U.S.
GDP. It is expected to show gross domestic product increased at
a 2.9% annualized rate, in line with the previous estimate.
Wall Street's main indexes marked their biggest daily gain so
far in December on Wednesday, with help from upbeat Nike Inc and
FedEx Corp quarterly earnings, as well as improving consumer
confidence and easing inflation expectations.
Fears of a recession following the U.S. central bank's prolonged
interest rate hikes have weighed heavily on equities this year,
with the benchmark S&P 500 set for annual declines of more than
18%, its worst such performance since the financial crisis of
2008.
The Fed struck a hawkish tone last week at its policy meeting by
saying that it expects interest rates to remain higher for
longer, sparking a selloff across stock markets.
Investors see a 71.4% chance of the Federal Reserve raising the
key benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 4.5%-4.75% in February,
keeping the terminal rate at 4.85% by May 2023.
"Fears of recession have been mounting as the Fed pushes ahead
with aggressive action to bring down interest rates," said Russ
Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
"However, after Nike delivered forecast-busting results on
Tuesday, a rebound in U.S. consumer confidence suggests that
while a soft landing for the American economy looks out of
reach, it at least isn't slamming into concrete."
At 5:58 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 32 points, or 0.1%, S&P
500 e-minis were down 2.75 points, or 0.07%, and Nasdaq 100
e-minis were down 7.75 points, or 0.07%.
Micron Technology Inc slipped 3% in premarket trading after the
chipmaker forecast a bigger-than-expected second-quarter loss.
(Reporting by Shubham Batra and Amruta Khandekar in Bengaluru;
Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
[© 2022 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
