In Markets "In a Nutshell"

Markets “In a Nutshell” for July 8, 2024

Investment Week at a Glance

Stocks finished higher for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.70%, the S&P 500 was up 2.00%, and the NASDAQ rose 3.50%. Foreign stocks (MSCI EAFE) were also up, rising 1.50%. Bond prices were up for the week, with the 10-year U.S. Treasury ending the week at 4.28%.  (Data source: Wall Street Journal)

Unemployment Ticks Higher

The June jobs report was released last week, and the number of jobs added was 206,000. However, May’s number was revised lower by 54,000 and overall unemployment ticked up from 4.0% to 4.1%. We are now above the Fed’s estimate for the year of 4.0% and also above the full employment threshold of 4%. This is another sign that the economy is beginning to cool off but is still not in a bad place overall. The good news about this report is that this may encourage the Fed to start cutting rates as unemployment is now higher than they predicted. This is why we saw a dip in rates along with a rise in equities. Wage gains also decreased, another sign of inflation cooling off and supporting the Fed to cut rates. The market continues to hope it can walk a fine line of the economy cooling off enough for the Fed to cut but not too much that we enter a recession.

June CPI Report Expectations

The June CPI report will be released on Thursday and the market will be paying close attention as expectations show inflation coming down to 3.1%. This would be a decrease of 0.2% from May’s report as we move closer to the 2% goal the Fed has set. The main reason for the lower expectations was energy prices decreased by 4% in the month of June. Energy prices typically affect other areas of the economy as the price of transport goods fluctuates as gas prices move. The market could move either way on the report depending on if we see higher or lower than expected inflation. Recent reports have shown inflation continues to move lower which has helped the market continue to make all-time highs throughout the year.

Quiz:

How many job openings are currently in the U.S? (Scroll Down for Answer)

 

  1.     8.1 million
  2.     9.6 million
  3.     10.9 million
  4.     12.8 million

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Answer below.

 

 

Have a Great Week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Answer:

1.   8.1 million. The number of job openings has fallen substantially from its peak in March of 2022 when it was 12.2 million. This shows the cooling off in the labor markets and explains why wage growth is also down as companies are having less jobs they need to fill.