It will be a holiday-shortened trading week in the U.S., with markets closed on Friday. We'll receive the latest reports on the labor market, including the February Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report, ADP's National Employment Report tracking private sector payrolls, and the March nonfarm payrolls report.
S&P Global and the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) will release PMI readings tracking the health of the U.S. manufacturing and service sectors.
Officials from OPEC+ will hold a virtual meeting on Monday, discussing the possibility of further supply cuts to shore up oil prices.
The Jobs Market in the Spotlight
On Tuesday, the Labor Department will release the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report for February, tracking the number of openings, hires, quits, and separations for the month. Job openings are projected to have fallen slightly to 10.8 million, down from 10.824 million in January. Openings remain far above pre-pandemic levels amid a tight labor market, with nearly two openings for every unemployed person.
On Wednesday, payroll provider ADP will issue its National Employment Report for March, tracking payrolls in the private sector. Private businesses likely added 200,000 positions in March, down from a larger-than-expected gain of 242,000 in February.
This could set the stage for the Labor Department’s nonfarm payrolls report on Friday. Economists project U.S. employers added 240,000 jobs in March, compared to the previous month’s gain of 311,000. The unemployment rate likely remained unchanged at 3.6%, near a 50-year low. The U.S. economy has added a combined 815,000 jobs in the first two months of 2023, or an average of 407,500 per month. This figure is slightly above an average monthly gain of 400,000 in 2022, suggesting the labor market remains strong despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool inflation and the economy by raising interest rates.
The Latest PMI Readings
We can also expect Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) survey readings from S&P Global and the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) next week. The ISM Manufacturing PMI, set to be released on Monday, is projected to have fallen to 47.1 in March, from 47.7 in February due to persistent weakness in the manufacturing sector. Any reading below 50 indicates a contraction in output. ISM will also release its Non-Manufacturing PMI tracking the U.S. services sector on Wednesday, while S&P Global will release its Composite PMI for March.