Wall Street steady ahead of new labor and inflation data

Wall Street was holding steady early Thursday ahead of the government’s latest data release on the labor market, a day after a private survey showed that the U.S. economy lost jobs last month.

Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each ticked up 0.1% before the opening bell. Nasdaq futures were unchanged.

On Wednesday, markets rose to near record levels after the private payroll data firm ADP estimated U.S. job losses of 32,000 in November.

The surprisingly weak report from ADP may be discouraging for people looking for jobs, but it bolstered expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut its main interest rate next week. If the Fed does, it would be the third cut of the year in hopes of supporting a slowing job market.

While the government’s weekly jobless claims report due later Thursday doesn’t generally move markets, it may carry more heft this week. That’s because the more comprehensive November jobs report won’t come out until after the Federal Reserve decides on interest rates next week. That report was delayed due to the government shutdown.

Investors love lower interest rates because they boost prices for investments and can boost the economy. The downside is that they can fuel inflation, which remains above the Fed’s 2% target.

On Friday, the government will release the Fed’s favored inflation measure, which central bank officials will also consider when making their decision on interest rates.

In equities trading, Dollar General rose 6% after it hit Wall Street’s third-quarter sales projections and profits came in ahead of expectations. Dollar General’s top line was lifted by solid sales at new stores as well as growth in same-store sales.

Five Below jumped 4.5% after the discount gift store chain trounced analysts’ third-quarter profit expectations and raised its full-year guidance.

Elsewhere, at midday in Europe, Germany’s DAX rose 0.8%, Britain’s FTSE 100 inched up 0.1% and France’s CAC-40 added 0.3%.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index climbed 2.3% to 51,028.42, nearing its all-time high, on expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut its main interest rate next week, even while traders speculate over whether the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates this month.

Technology and telecoms giant SoftBank Group Corp.’s shares jumped 9.2% after the company’s founder reaffirmed the company’s strategic shift to focus on OpenAI and other investments in artificial intelligence. SoftBank’s shares are still down nearly 28% from a month ago, when it announced it had sold its stake in chip maker Nvidia for $5.8 billion to be able to invest more in AI.

The Japanese government’s 10-year bond yield rose above 1.9%, it’s highest since 2007.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index reversed early trading losses, adding 0.7% to 25,935.90, led by gains for tech and consumer stocks. The Shanghai Composite index shed 0.1% to 3,875.79.

South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.2% to 4,028.51, with weakness in tech and automotive stocks weighing on the benchmark.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index recovered from a slump earlier in the day, adding 0.3% to 8,618.40.

Taiwan’s Taiex index and India’s BSE Sensex were nearly unchanged.

In energy markets early Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 31 cents to $59.26 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 26 cents to $62.93 per barrel.