U.S. stock futures were firm on Friday after a strong rally as attention focused on important monthly jobs data that could change the timing of a rate cut.
S&P 500 (^GSPC) futures were little changed after setting a new record, while Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) futures were down about 0.2%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index Futures (^NDX) fell 0.1% after surging on Thursday.
Markets buoyed after Chairman Jerome Powell told lawmakers it would “not be long” before the Federal Reserve is confident that inflation is in the right conditions for the central bank to start lowering borrowing costs. was pushed up.
Investors are now focused on February's jobs report, which is expected to show some signs of calming down after last month's strong growth shocked Wall Street. The measurements will indicate whether the economic recovery is temporary or a sign of labor market strength that could persuade the Federal Reserve to wait longer before cutting rates. The report is scheduled to be released Friday at 8:30 a.m. ET.
With inflation falling faster than expected, European Central Bank policymakers are lining up to support interest rate cuts in the region before the summer break, showing the wind is blowing elsewhere. did. Meanwhile, Bank of Japan officials are said to be open to the idea of eventually raising interest rates from negative territory.
On the corporate side, Costco's (COST) stock price fell as quarterly sales did not exceed earnings. Broadcom (AVGO)'s sales surpassed $10 billion in sales of AI-related chips, but the company failed to impress investors and its stock price fell.
In the commodity market, gold futures (GC=F) continued to rise as spot gold prices aimed for their biggest weekly gain in five months amid optimism about a mid-year Fed rate cut.
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Costco is Costco
Costco (COST) is Costco and has historically performed very well for investors.
The company sells giant hot dogs for $1.50 in the food court (and they're delicious, as you can see in this 2022 photo with outgoing CEO Craig Jelinek). In the most recent quarter, online sales rose 18% due to demand for gold bars. To my surprise, I found (and bought) two tomahawk steaks at my local Costco for $40 (about 5 pounds of meat) a few weeks ago.
Costco just does things differently, it's in its DNA. The stock price has increased 245% over the past five years because members are happy with their purchases.
So I wasn't surprised when Costco's longtime CFO, Richard Galanti (who will soon be retiring), announced during last night's earnings call that the company is getting into the sushi business.
“We recently opened our first fully-operated sushi restaurant in Issaquah, Washington, across the street from our corporate headquarters, and we plan to open two more locations in the near future. It is something that has been successful for many years.”
Sign me up for a California roll, Rich.
I recommend Costco's hot dogs. On the right is now retired Costco CEO Craig Jelinek. (Yahoo Finance)
