U.S. stock futures closed slightly higher Monday night, after the Dow fell from its record Friday prior to the three-day Labor Day weekend.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 82 points or 0.23%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.21% and 0.331%, respectively.
The Dow lost 74.73 point, or 0.2%, in regular trading on Friday. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 dropped slightly by 0.03%. The broad market was supported by the tech-rich Nasdaq, which rose 0.2%.
These losses occurred after the August jobs report was below expectations. This highlights continued concerns about the spread and impact of Covid and its delta variant. The Labor Department reported that nonfarm payrolls rose by 235,000 in August. However, Dow Jones surveyed economists and predicted 720,000 jobs.
Ryan Detrick is LPL Financial's chief strategist for market strategies. He said that there could be a strong rebound in jobs "in the coming months" and that there were promising signs that the worst of Covid cases may be over. Detrick stated that the Fed's tapering timeline is likely to be delayed by the August jobs report, which was widely expected to start this year.
He stated that Powell, the Fed Chair, has made it clear to Powell that the labor market would be his tell about when to taper asset purchases. "With Friday's big payroll miss, it is evident that the labor market is under pressure. While these pressures are likely not to subside, the Fed will likely err on one side and avoid premature action.
The major averages are up one week into September, despite a weak kickoff for the month. The Dow is up 15.5% year-to-date, while the S&P is up 20.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 19.2%. Analysts and investors are still watching for a September correction.
Bank of America stated Friday that passive investors are still feeling pain. However, some signs suggest that it is time to get 'pickier about stocks'.
Tuesday's economic data will not be released. Mary Daly, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco will speak later in the week at a Brookings Institute conference.
