Markets rise ahead of US payrolls report - 5.8.2022

The Dollar weakening has halted currently. The live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, slid 0.4% Thursday while the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported less Americans applied for initial jobless claims last week than expected while their number rose.

GBP/USD joined EUR/USD’s accelerated advancing Thursday while the Bank of England hiked interest rates by 50 basis points, its largest single increase since 1995. At the same time BOE forecast that the UK will enter recession from the fourth quarter of 2022, and that the recession will last five quarters. Both euro and Pound are lower against the Dollar currently. USD/JPY reversed its advancing yesterday while AUD/USD slowed its climbing with the Australian dollar higher against the Greenback currently and yen lower.

US stock indexes futures are up currently ahead of July non-farm payrolls report at 14:30 CET with the yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes up at 2.685%. The three main US stock benchmarks closed mixed yesterday recording returns in the range of -0.26% to 0.4%.

European stock market futures are down today after closing marginally higher Thursday led by travel and leisure shares. Asian stock indexes futures are mostly up currently with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng defying the regional trend.

Brent is edging higher presently. Prices ended down Thursday after the Energy Information Administration report the previous day US gasoline stocks rose as demand slowed last week. OPEC+ agreed on Wednesday to raise its output target by 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) in September, equivalent to 0.1% of global demand. The US oil benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) slumped 2.1% but is higher currently. Brent crude lost 2.75% to $94.12 a barrel on Thursday.