- Stocks experienced significant volatility near a key technical level, as traders awaited the all-important jobs report for clues on the Federal Reserve's next policy steps. The dollar fell in tandem with bond yields.
- A major battle is raging around the S&P 500's 200-day moving average, which some analysts believe indicates the continuation of a move when breached. The equity gauge surpassed that level following a massive rally fueled by Jerome Powell's signals of a slowing in the pace of tightening – but struggled to regain solid footing on Thursday.
- Equities ended little changed after falling on news that US manufacturing contracted in November for the first time since May 2020. Concerns that Fed rate hikes will increase the likelihood of a recession were heightened by the report, which also revealed that a consumer price index had the second-smallest increase this year.
- The remarkably resilient US job market is beginning to cool, but Friday's employment report will fall far short of the tipping point sought by Fed officials in their fight against inflation. There are signs that labor demand is slowing, but a larger slowdown is required to bring demand more in line with labor supply and thus limit wage growth.
- According to the median forecast of economists, payrolls will rise 200,000 in November, while hourly earnings will rise 4.6% from a year ago.
