Stocks Trim Gains as Traders Parse Jobs Revision: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) — Stocks trimmed gains after the annual revision of US payrolls, with Wall Street now gearing up for the Federal Reserve minutes in the run-up to Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday.

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Equities edged mildly higher, following an S&P 500 drop that halted an eight-day winning streak. While the annual revision to US jobs growth isn’t something that would usually impact trading, it got attention this time around due to the recent concern the labor market is cooling too much amid elevated Fed rates.

US job growth was probably far less robust in the year through March than previously reported, according to government data out Wednesday. The number of workers on payrolls will likely be revised down by 818,000 for the 12 months through March — or around 68,000 less each month — according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ preliminary benchmark revision. While economists largely anticipated a decline, some predicted a loss of up to 1 million jobs.

“Overall, it was on the softer side, but the roughly 35-minute delay in releasing the data has left the price action relatively muted overall,” said Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets.

The S&P 500 hovered near 5,600. Target Corp. climbed 15% after ending a string of sales declines in the second quarter, citing improved discretionary spending. Macy’s Inc. slightly missed estimates for its quarterly revenue and lowered its outlook for sales during the rest of the year.

Treasury 10-year yields were little changed at 3.8%. Swap traders are again pricing 100 basis points of Fed cuts in 2024. Traders will also scour minutes from the latest Fed policy meeting, at which the central bank held interest rates steady. Any clues on the path ahead for rates will be in focus, as well as any guidance on when the Fed will complete its current course of quantitative tightening.

Corporate Highlights:

Ford Motor Co. is recalibrating its electrification strategy yet again, canceling plans for a fully electric sport utility vehicle in a shift that may cost the carmaker around $1.9 billion.
Walmart Inc. raised about $3.6 billion by selling its stake in Chinese e-commerce firm JD.com Inc., winding down an eight-year partnership that appears to be paying diminishing returns amid a challenging landscape for Chinese tech giants.
US coal producer Consol Energy Inc. agreed to merge with Arch Resources Inc. in a $2.3 billion deal as the transition to greener fuels threatens the industry’s long-term outlook.
Brookfield Asset Management is asking banks to line up about €9.5 billion ($10.6 billion) of debt for its potential take-private deal for Spanish pharmaceutical producer Grifols SA, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Key events this week:

Eurozone HCOB PMI, consumer confidence, Thursday
ECB publishes account of July rate decision, Thursday
US initial jobless claims, existing home sales, S&P Global PMI, Thursday
Japan CPI, Friday
BOJ’s Kazuo Ueda to attend special session at Japan’s parliament to discuss July hike, Friday
US new home sales, Friday
Jerome Powell speaks in Jackson Hole, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks