- Friday’s jobs report is expected to show slower employment growth.
- Saks Fifth Avenue’s parent company, HBC, has announced it will acquire Neiman Marcus Group in a deal valued at $2.65 billion.
- Some wealthy Democratic donors say they won’t return their money unless President Joe Biden drops out of the presidential race.
Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both hit new all-time highs on Wednesday and closed at record highs. (Markets were closed Thursday for the July 4 holiday.) The broad market index rose 0.51%, while the tech-heavy index rose 0.88%, led by mega-cap tech names like Tesla and Nvidia. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was the outlier, down 23.85 points, or 0.06%, for the day. Trading volume was muted on Wednesday as the New York Stock Exchange closed early. Follow live market updates.
Signs at a job fair at Brunswick Community College in Bolivia, North Carolina, USA, on Thursday, April 11, 2024.
Allison Joyce | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Friday’s jobs report is expected to show slowing employment growth as concerns mount about the broader economy. Economists polled by Dow Jones predict that the June nonfarm employment report, due at 8:30 a.m. ET, will show growth of 200,000. If that happens, it would be down from the 272,000 reported in May. The expected pace of job growth is still solid, but investors and economists will be keeping an eye on the unemployment rate, which has been slowly rising. It hit 4% in May, the first time it has reached that threshold since January 2022, and is forecast to remain there.
Saks Fifth Avenue store in the Waterside Shops.
John Greim | Lightrocket | Getty Images
HBC, the parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue, said it will acquire luxury retailer Neiman Marcus Group in a deal valued at $2.65 billion. The acquisition will create Saks Global, which will include Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks OFF 5TH, Neiman Marcus’ namesake department store chain and Bergdorf Goodman. Saks.com CEO Marc Metrick will become CEO of Saks Global as part of the deal, and HBC CEO Richard Baker will serve as executive chairman of the company. The deal comes at a turbulent time for traditional brick-and-mortar retailers, which have struggled amid the e-commerce boom.
A trader works as a screen broadcasts a press conference from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell following the Fed’s interest rate announcement on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York City, June 12, 2024.
Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
Federal Reserve officials signaled at their June meeting that inflation is moving in the right direction. But they reiterated that they are not ready to cut interest rates from their current range until they are “more confident” that inflation is moving toward the Fed’s 2% target. Minutes from the meeting released Wednesday showed some disagreement among the 19 central bankers who participated in the talks, with some even indicating they might be inclined to raise rates. But they ultimately decided to keep rates steady at 5.25%-5.50%.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks about extreme weather at the DC Emergency Operations Center in Washington, DC, on July 2, 2024.
Jim Watson | Afp | Getty Images
Some wealthy Democratic donors, including an heiress to the Disney family fortune, said they will withhold donations to the party until President Joe Biden withdraws from the presidential race. The revolt comes after Biden’s disastrous debate performance raised concerns about Biden’s ability to win the race against former President Donald Trump. Abigail Disney, the granddaughter of Walt Disney Company co-founder Roy O. Disney, has funded the party for years but told CNBC she is halting her contributions because “the stakes are way too high.” And she’s not alone. Gideon Stein, the president of the Moriah Fund, also said he is pausing planned donations of $3.5 million unless Biden steps aside. The president has said he has no plans to pull out.
— CNBC’s Alex Harring, Jeff Cox and Brian Schwartz contributed to this report.
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