Stock market today: US stocks tick higher as traders await Fed minutes and jobs data
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- Stocks rose on Wednesday as traders waited for key updates on Fed policy and the US job market.
- The Fed will release minutes from its July meeting, offering investors more insight into its thinking on rates.
- Revised jobs data from April 2023 to March 2024 is due out Wednesday morning.
US stocks edged higher on Wednesday as traders looked forward to the release of the Fed's meeting minutes and revised jobs data. All three benchmark indexes ticked higher in early morning trading, while bond yields slumped.
The central bank will release the minutes from its July policy meeting Wednesday afternoon, which will provide further clues about what officials are thinking about the economy and the path of interest rates.
Traders are still betting on hefty rate cuts by year-end, with markets pricing in a 67% chance the Fed could cut rates 100 basis points or more by December, per the CME FedWatch tool.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics, meanwhile, will release its estimates for its Preliminary Benchmark Revision to Establishment Data Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. ET, which will include revised jobs data from April 2023 through March 2024.
Commentators say they are expecting the report to reveal that the US created fewer jobs over the 12-month period than previously indicated, which could also influence the path of rate cuts this year.
"We have long warned that the jobs numbers were unreliable and subject to dramatic revision. No investment decisions should be made on these numbers," Nancy Tengler, the chief investment officer of Laffer Tangler Investments, said in a note. "Our bet? They will be revised as they have been month after month," she added, referring to recent downwards revisions to payrolls.
Here's where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. opening bell on Wednesday:
- S&P 500: 5,609.20, up 0.22%
- Dow Jones Industrial Average: 40,921.63, up 0.21% (+86.66 points)
- Nasdaq composite: 17,854.41, up 0.23%
Here's what else is going on today:
- How Trump vs. Harris is playing out on Wall Street.
- Nvidia added $765 billion to its market value in less than two weeks.
- China's EVs are fueling a big oil demand slowdown.
In commodities, bonds, and crypto:
- West Texas Intermediate crude oil ticked higher 0.5% to $73.57 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 0.39% to $77.50 a barrel.
- Gold edged lower to $2,509.38 per ounce.
- The 10-year Treasury dipped one basis point to 3.807%.
- Bitcoin was down 1.73% to $59,571.