Premarket: 6 things to know before the bell
1. US jobs report: The US Labor Department will release its monthly employment data at 8:30 a.m. ET. Investors are expecting another set of solid job gains and steady wage growth.
Goldman Sachs predicts that the US economy added 175,000 jobs in August, with the unemployment rate ticking down to 3.8% from 3.9%.
The economy added just 157,000 jobs in July after averaging 221,000 jobs over the past six months.
The job market is so hot that it might have to cool off, simply because there aren’t enough people to fill open positions.
Some of the cooling may be self-inflicted: Concerns over new tariffs announced in recent months may have delayed hiring, analysts at Goldman wrote.
2. British Airways data breach: Shares in IAG (BABWF), the parent company of British Airways, opened 3.5% lower in London after the airline said that customer details had been stolen.
British Airways said the personal and financial details of customers making bookings on its website and app between August 21 and September 5 were taken. Around 380,000 payment card details were compromised.
“We are deeply sorry for the disruption that this criminal activity has caused,” the company said in a statement.
3. Bitcoin trouble: Bitcoin prices have plunged more than 20% in the past two days. The price of Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple and other cryptocurrencies also dropped after Business Insider reported that investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS) may be dropping plans to launch a crypto trading desk.
Goldman Sachs told CNNMoney that it hadn’t made a firm decision about bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.
4. Global market overview: US stock futures were lower.
European markets opened mixed, following a trend set in Asia. The Nikkei shed 0.8% lower after the Wall Street Journal reported Japan could be the next target in the Trump administration’s trade war.
Oil prices were slightly higher after a report on US inventories published Thursday showed a drop in stockpiles.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed 0.1% higher on Thursday, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.4%. The Nasdaq finished flat.
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5. Companies and economics: Germany’s trade surplus narrowed unexpectedly in July, with imports rising 2.8% and exports dropping 0.9%. The data became a closely watched indicator after Germany was targeted by President Donald Trump over its trade surplus.
Mexico’s inflation report will be published at 9 a.m. ET.
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6. Coming this week:
Friday — Jobs report
