When it comes to Friday’s jobs report, investors can’t decide what they want. The November non-farm payrolls report is one of the most important economic data before the Federal Reserve meets on December 17-18, and the central bank is expected to cut further rate cuts before the end of the year. But whether a weak or strong number coming Friday will bode well for interest rate forecasts, and markets, is unclear, with observers arguing both sides of the argument. The US economy is expected to have added 214,000 jobs last month, according to a consensus among economists polled by Dow Jones. .SPX YTD mountain S & P 500 John Flood, head of Americas equity sales at Goldman Sachs Global Banking & Markets, said on Tuesday he expected markets to cheer the softer report, identifying a number between 150,000 and 200,000 as “sweet”. spot” for stocks. If that below-consensus report is what traders get on Friday, he said the S&P 500 could rise 0.5% to 1%. Sure enough, Goldman Sachs’ official forecast shows an increase of 235,000 jobs in non-farm payrolls, and stocks The figure could decline on Friday, Flood wrote.Meanwhile, JPMorgan traders expect a strong jobs report to fuel the market higher It’s only expected that the U.S. will add 275,000 jobs last month, with the bank expecting a number between 230,000 and 300,000, which would be associated with a higher unemployment rate, a 0.25% to 1% rise in the S&P 500. The US added between 200,000 and 230,000 jobs last month That would mean the Fed is on track to cut rates at its next policy meeting in less than two weeks, when the broader index could add 0.50% to 0.75%. . All three major averages hit new all-time highs this week. Year to date, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 19%, the S&P 500 is up more than 27% and the Nasdaq Composite is up more than 31%.
