Tech stocks gain ahead of US jobs report
European stocks tracked a tech-driven rally in Asia as investors awaited a critical US jobs report due later on Friday. The yen surged to a three-week high.
The Stoxx 600 rose 0.2%, with technology shares contributing most to the benchmark’s advance. US futures pointed to further strength on Wall Street after Apple Inc.’s better-than-estimated earnings. In Asia, Hong Kong stocks rose for a ninth straight session as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Tencent Holdings Ltd. and JD.com Inc. touched fresh 2024 highs.
US non-farm payroll data becomes the next big trigger for markets after Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell effectively laid conversations about a potential rate hike to rest earlier in the week. The forecast gain of 240,000 jobs would be the weakest since November.
An index of the dollar weakened for a third day, while Treasuries were steady. The US 10-year yield is down about 8 basis points this week at 4.58%.
A survey conducted by 22V Research shows that30% of the investors polled think Friday’s jobs report will be “risk-on,” 27% expect a “risk-off” reaction, and 43% said “mixed/negligible.” Among the labor indicators, the tally showed investors will be paying the most attention to average hourly earnings.
“The markets will be hungry for any data suggesting the economy isn’t heating up any more than it did in the first quarter,” said Chris Larkin at E*Trade from Morgan Stanley.
Corporate Highlights:
The yen headed for its best week since December 2022. The currency has likely gotten official support, with estimates indicating Japan spent more than $20 billion in its latest round of intervention.
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