Stock futures edged up Thursday evening on the heels of a choppy trading day.
Earlier, stocks closed out the regular session mixed, with the Dow falling for back-to-back sessions, and the Nasdaq rising for its fifth straight day as tech shares continued their run of outperformances. Information technology remains the top-performing sector in the S&P 500 so far in June with a month to date gain of more than 5%, and has outperformed for 2020 so far.
On Friday, stocks may see an additional uptick in volume – and potentially volatility – due to quadruple witching. The quarterly occurrence marks the date in which expirations for stock index futures and options, along with individual stock futures and options, occur simultaneously. Heightened volume tends to take place around market open and close during quadruple witching days.
Equity markets registered little reaction to the Labor Department’s weekly report on new unemployment insurance claims Thursday morning, which showed an estimates-topping more than 1.5 million Americans filed new jobless claims last week. But to economists, the data – with the level of new claims still more than double the peak during the Great Recession – was a signal of a slower than expected recovery for the labor market even with shelter in place orders easing.
The “numbers suggest that the reopening story may not be generating as much momentum for job creation as the surprise May payrolls number had suggested,” James Knightley, chief international economist for ING, said in a note.
“While recent activity data, particularly surrounding the consumer sector, has been very encouraging we are a long way from returning to ‘normality,’ Knightley added. “The extended unemployment benefits including the extra $600 per week payment, have clearly supported incomes and spending. However, the $600 payment is due to end in six weeks and if it isn’t extended in an environment where unemployment remains very high, there is a clear risk spending subsides again.”
state mandated that residents wear masks outside their homes. Similarly, new coronavirus cases in Florida rose by a one-day state record of more than 3,200, as did cases in Texas, where the hospitalization rate also increased for a seventh straight day. Other states in the Sun Belt also saw spikes in cases, as regions struggled to keep infection rates down with reopenings under way.” data-reactid=”22″>Some states undergoing reopening processes have also contended with resurgences in coronavirus cases, which could further hamper the recovery. California on Thursday reported its largest one-day increase in Covid-19 cases yet with cases rising by 4,084, and the state mandated that residents wear masks outside their homes. Similarly, new coronavirus cases in Florida rose by a one-day state record of more than 3,200, as did cases in Texas, where the hospitalization rate also increased for a seventh straight day. Other states in the Sun Belt also saw spikes in cases, as regions struggled to keep infection rates down with reopenings under way.
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6:01 p.m. ET Thursday: Stock futures open higher
Here were the main moves at the start of the overnight session for U.S. equity futures, as of 6:01 p.m. ET:
S&P 500 futures (ES=F): 3,113.25, up 4.25 points or 0.14%
Dow futures (YM=F): 26,045, up 21 points, or 0.08%
Nasdaq futures (NQ=F): 10,007.75, up 12 points, or 0.12%
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