Futures on the New York Stock Exchange remained steady on Thursday as investors braced themselves for the release of this week’s U.S. weekly jobless claims report on Friday. Futures on the S&P 500 edged 0.1% lower, while those on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.2%. Nasdaq Composite futures remained relatively static.
After the latest ADP private-sector hiring data proved to be weaker than expected, all signs seem to be indicating that the U.S. job market is continuing to cool down. This is lifting pressure off markets, providing the Federal Reserve with room to reconsider further interest rate hikes.
In other news, oil prices continued to fall, with West Texas Intermediate futures slipping 1.7% to move below $84 per barrel while Brent crude futures declined by 1.6% to less than $84 per barrel as well. This comes amid concerns that demand will continue to fall amid a global economic slowdown.