S&P and Nasdaq Futures Edge UP as Traders Digest Labour Data

Contracts on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures pared earlier gains but remained in positive territory on Thursday, up 0.1% and 0.2% respectively, while Dow Jones futures fluctuated between small gains and losses as traders digested the latest ADP report.

The US private sector added only 54K jobs in August, reinforcing signs that the labour market is losing momentum and strengthening expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut this month.

Initial jobless claims also rose to 237K, the highest in nearly two months.

This followed Wednesday’s weaker-than-expected JOLTS report, with investors now awaiting Friday’s key nonfarm payrolls release.

On the corporate front, Broadcom shares gained 0.7% in premarket trading ahead of its quarterly earnings due after the closing bell, while Tesla advanced nearly 1% after opening its robotaxi app to the public.