• US stocks have taken a downward turn as investors focus on disappointing labor market data and await the upcoming jobs report.
• The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are showing signs of slight recovery, with the former gaining 0.25% and the latter gaining 0.55%.
• Cryptocurrency markets remain relatively steady, with Bitcoin trading just above the significant level of $28,000 at $28,179.
Economic Uncertainty
US stocks took a downward turn earlier today, with investors focusing on disappointing labor market data and anticipating Friday’s jobs report as a potential indicator of the Federal Reserve’s tightening policy pushing the economy toward a recession. European stocks were little changed before the Easter holiday as traders await US jobs data to assess its impact on Fed monetary policy.
S&P 500 & Nasdaq Performance
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq may break their three-week winning streaks at the end of this holiday-shortened week; however they are both showing signs of slight recovery with respective gains of 0.25% and 0.55%.
Labor Market Struggles
Today’s economic data release pointed to an ongoing struggle in the U.S. labor market due to aggressive interest rate hikes intended to temper inflationary pressures in an already fragile economy. The Labor Department will release its March employment report on Friday, giving traders time over the weekend to digest its contents before trading resumes Monday morning .
Investor Expectations
Tom Hanlin from US Bank Wealth Management highlighted investor concerns revolving around a potential economic slowdown, further rate hikes by the Fed, and chances for a recession in coming months. Financial markets reflect a 52% chance that Fed funds target rate will stay between 4.75%-5% after their next monetary policy meeting in May, according to CME’s FedWatch tool; however investors remain divided about likelihood of rate hike in upcoming meeting with some even anticipating cuts by year-end causing volatility in markets currently..
Crypto Market Status
Meanwhile crypto total market capitalization remains steady at $1.19 trillion while Bitcoin trades marginally up at $28,179 – above significant resistance level of $28k – although volume has been declining for past two weeks indicating bearish bias is still present