Futures Flat as Jobs Numbers Beat Estimates



Stock futures dropped Friday as investors digested stronger than expected jobs data, which worried investors looking for signals that the Federal Reserve can slow interest rate hikes.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials dropped 65 points, or 0.2%, to 34,364.

Futures for the S&P 500 fell 5.75 points, or 0.1%, to 4,076.

Futures for the NASDAQ Composite subsided 28.5 points, or 0.2%, to 12,034.25.

Non-farm payrolls increased 263,000 in November, a gain larger than the 200,000 jobs expected by analysts polled by Dow Jones.

Friday’s is the final monthly employment report before the Federal Reserve’s two-day meeting on Dec. 13 and 14, in which the central bank is expected to raise its fed funds target rate by a half-percentage point. A 50-basis-point increase would mark a slowing from the prior 75-basis-point rate hikes set by the central bank.

Tesla shares were slightly higher in pre-market trading after CEO Elon Musk delivered the first Semi trucks to PepsiCo at an event on Thursday. The trucks were first unveiled in 2017 and originally due to be produced in 2019 but were delayed by the pandemic and other issues.

DoorDash shares fell 2.8% in pre-market trading after RBC Capital Markets downgraded the stock to “sector perform” from “outperform.” RBC praised the delivery service’s execution and management, but said it’s uncomfortable with the current valuation given the potential for order deceleration.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 shed 1.6% Friday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index lost 0.3%.

Oil prices gained 70 cents to $81.92 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices gave back $4.40 to $1,801.80 U.S. an ounce.