Is the economy headed for a soft landing or a recession?
Friday’s jobs report will offer new clues on the health of the labor market, which is showing signs of weakness. The data is likely to feed into the debate about how soon the Federal Reserve could start cutting rates.
Meantime, Treasury yields stabilized early Thursday, while oil prices regained a little ground. Global investors parsed new economic data from China and Germany.
Stock futures were subdued. Contracts tied to the S&P 500 and Dow industrials slipped, while Nasdaq-100 futures edged higher.
Bond markets stabilized. The U.S. 10-year yield inched up toward 4.15%.
The Japanese yen rallied, as speculation mounted that the country’s longstanding experiment with negative rates could soon come to an end.
U.S. oil prices nudged up to about $70 a barrel, after settling Wednesday at their lowest since late June.
Overseas stocks weakened. Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 1.8% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.7% after disappointing import data from China. Germany’s Dax, which set a new record Wednesday, pulled back following weak industrial-production figures.
