by Andre Janse van Vuuren and Anand Krishnamoorthy
US stock futures are holding onto two days of gains as investors await further data on the labor market, which has so far held up better than expected amid the Trump administration’s trade war.
S&P 500 contracts were little changed after the US benchmark posted consecutive advances for the first time since mid-May. MSCI’s gauge for global equities hit an all-time high after gains in European and Asian stocks. The dollar fell 0.1% and US Treasuries held steady.
While some economists fear a notable weakening in US employment in coming months under the weight of tariffs, that hasn’t shown up in the data yet. The muted impact has lifted optimism and helped offset concerns over President Donald Trump’s trade policies, which economists have warned could lead to an economic slowdown.
Investors will follow services data and ADP’s report on private-sector employment later Wednesday for updated information on the strength of the US economy, ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report.
“We’re not seeing the shocks yet in terms of how the tariffs will impact the labor market, for example, how it will impact inflation,” Moritz Kraemer, chief economist and head of research at LBBW Bank, said on Bloomberg TV. “This is just deferred.”
In South Korea, the Kospi Index jumped 2.7% after the country elected a new president, capping six months of political chaos. The Korean won gained 0.8%.
“A confluence of clearer macro and political signals is giving markets fresh air,” said Hebe Chen, an analyst at Vantage Markets in Melbourne. “Optimism brewed on Wall Street overnight after upbeat job data, and was amplified in Asia by Korea’s post-election clarity. Together, they’ve handed investors a solid reason to stay risk-on.”
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This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
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