Stocks Decline After Better-Than-Expected ADP Employment Change Report

Strong Job Market Data Fails To Provide Support To Stocks

S&P 500 futures are losing some ground after the release of ADP Employment Change report which indicated that private businesses hired 692,000 workers compared to analyst consensus of 600,000.

It remains to be seen whether the better-than-expected report will be able to provide additional support to stocks as strong job market may push Fed to raise rates in 2022.

Some traders would prefer to wait for the release of additional job market reports before making big moves. On Thursday, U.S. will release Initial Jobless Claims report which is expected to show that Initial Jobless Claims declined from 411,000 to 390,000. On Friday, traders will focus on Non Farm Payrolls report which is projected to indicate that the economy added 700,000 jobs in June.

Gold Tries To Settle Below $1750

U.S. dollar got a boost after the release of ADP Employment Change report which is bearish for gold and other precious metals. Currently, gold is trying to settle below the support level at $1750.

If gold declines below this level, it will gain additional downside momentum which will be bearish for gold mining stocks that have already been under significant pressure in recent trading sessions.

WTI Oil Tests The $74 Level Ahead Of OPEC+ Meeting

WTI oil is currently trying to settle above the $74 level as traders increase their bets on higher oil prices ahead of OPEC+ meeting.

According to recent reports, OPEC+ is ready to discuss the extension of the current production cut deal beyond April 2022. OPEC+ believes that the market will need support until the end of 2022.

The position of Saudi Arabia and Russia is not known at this point. Typically, Russia wanted to increase production sooner than Saudi Arabia, but these countries have previously managed to reach consensus on the size of production cuts.

Traders are confident that OPEC+ will continue to provide support to the oil market, and WTI oil looks ready to test the psychologically important $75 level.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.