US stocks drifted near all-time highs on Tuesday as investors digested fresh jobs data and waited for new Fedspeak to cement or dent growing hopes for future interest rate cuts.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) hugged the flat line in early trade, coming off fresh records for the two gauges. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) reversed earlier gains to fall about 0.1%.
Job openings rose by 372,000 to 7.74 million in October compared to estimates of 7.52 million, according to BLS data released on Tuesday.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) also showed fewer hires were made during the month while the quits rate, a sign of confidence among workers, rose to 2.1% from 1.9% in September.
JOLTS serves as the first in a wave of key data this week that culminates in Friday’s all-important monthly US payrolls report.
Traders are now pricing in about a 74% chance that the Fed will lower rates by a quarter percentage point at its Dec. 18 meeting, compared with 62% a day ago, per the CME FedWatch tool.
Those odds could shift after Fed policymakers Austan Goolsbee and Adriana Kugler appear later on Tuesday, which set the stage for Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s panel discussion on Wednesday.
On the corporate front, Tesla (TSLA) stock slipped in early trading after shipments of the EV maker’s China-built models fell again, putting sales targets in doubt. In addition, CEO Elon Musk’s $56 billion pay deal was rejected again by a judge.
Meanwhile, shares in US Steel (X) fell about 8% on the heels of President-elect Donald Trump’s promise to “block” its $15 billion takeover by Japan’s Nippon Steel (5401.T, NPSCY). Trump said tax incentives and tariffs will enable the American steel giant to thrive on its own.
Political turmoil in France is also attracting market attention, with the government on the brink of collapse as it faces a parliamentary vote. With Germany also set for a snap election after a government breakdown, Wall Street is keeping a close eye on the two pillars of the EU.
