Friday November 4th

U.S. stock markets index futures rose Friday as investors digested the October jobs report and what it means for the pace of future rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 195 points, or 0.6%. S&P 500 futures were 0.7% higher, while futures tied to the Nasdaq 100 added 0.8%. A better-than-expected October nonfarm payrolls report on Friday further fueled some concerns that the Fed will persist with its tightening campaign. The report showed 261,000 payrolls added in October, surpassing a Dow Jones estimate of 205,000 additions. The unemployment rate came in at 3.7%, slightly above the expected 3.5%. The jobs report comes after another downbeat session for Wall Street. The Dow on Thursday lost about 0.5%, while the S&P 500 fell 1%. The Nasdaq, meanwhile, shed 1.7%. Investors weighed the latest 0.75 percentage point rate hike from the Fed, as well as commentary from chair Jerome Powell that suggested a pivot could be further away than traders anticipated. All the major averages are on track to close out the week with losses. As of Thursday’s close, the Dow is down 2.62%, and set to end four weeks of gains. The S&P and Nasdaq are down 4.64% and 6.84%, respectively, on pace to break two-week winning streaks. The tech-heavy Nasdaq is also on course for its worst weekly performance since January 2022. Corporate earnings season continued, with mobile payment company Block surging 13% after beating  expectations. Carvana shared dropped as it posted a wider-than-expected loss, while Twilio and Atlassian both plummeted on disappointing guidance. Hong Kong stocks briefly rose 7% on Friday, with tech and consumer cyclical stocks driving the surge amid China reopening rumors and a report that U.S. inspections of Chinese company audits were completed more quickly than expected. The Hang Seng index closed 5.36% up at 16,161.14, while the Hang Seng Tech index soared 7.54%. Stocks in the city have been reacting to speculation about a potential China reopening as zero-Covid policies persist, dragging the economy. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite Index closed up 2.43% at 3,070.80 and the Shenzhen Component gained 3.20% to stand at 11,187.43 Japan’s Nikkei 225′s ended 1.68% lower to stand at 27,199.74 after a holiday on Thursday. The Topix slid 1.29%, closing at 1,915.40. In South Korea, the Kospi added 0.83% to 2,348.43. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 closed 0.5% higher at 6,892.50. Oil climbed on Friday as the dollar eased and supply risks lingered, though recession fears and China’s Covid outbreaks kept a check on prices. Brent crude futures were up $2.72, or 2.9%, to $97.39 a barrel. The contract is headed for a weekly climb of more than 1.5%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up $2.90, or 3.3%, at $91.07 a barrel, on course for a weekly gain of more than 3%. Gold prices jumped more than 1% on Friday and were headed for a weekly gain, as the dollar eased, while investors looked forward to U.S. jobs report later in the day that could shed more light on Federal Reserve’s rate-hike path. Spot gold rose 1.3% to $1,649.89 per ounce, and was up 0.4% for the week so far. U.S. gold futures gained 1.3% to $1,652.60. The dollar index fell 0.5%, making gold more appealing for other currency holders.