Heading: Latest Updates on FTSE 100 and Financial Markets – June 7, 2024

The latest updates on the FTSE 100 and London’s financial markets from City A.M.’s newsroom in the heart of the City of London.

The recent rally in US stocks stalled as investors await the jobs report.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.20 per cent to 38,886.17, while the S&P 500 slightly dipped by 0.02 per cent to 5,352.96, and the Nasdaq Composite decreased by 0.09 per cent to 17,173.12.

S&P 500 and Nasdaq initially hit highs but later dipped as tech stocks fell. Meanwhile, utilities and industrials dragged down the S&P 500, while consumer discretionary and energy sectors gained.

Notable stock movements include GameStop surging by 47 per cent after an online influencer announced a livestream, Lululemon’s stock rising by 4.8 per cent on strong first-quarter results, NIO’s US-listed shares falling by 6.8 per cent due to quarterly losses, and Five Below dropping by 10.6 per cent after lowering its sales forecast.

In the UK, stocks rose as the ECB cut rates and commodities gained. Futures suggest a positive start for Friday, with the EUROSTOXX 50 steady and the FTSE 100 up by 0.08 per cent to 8305.5. S&P 500 futures are up by 0.04 per cent, and Nasdaq futures by 0.12 per cent.

The dollar remains near an eight-week low, with the US dollar index barely changing at 104.13, close to its recent low of 103.99, marking its first dip below 104 since April 9.

In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and Chinese blue chips CSI300 rose, while Japan’s Nikkei N225 fell. The Kospi index rose by 0.6 per cent, driven by a significant increase of up to 5.6 per cent in SK Hynix, the world’s second-largest producer of memory chips.

In commodities, oil prices rose slightly with hints of output changes from Saudi Arabia and Russia, though markets faced a third consecutive week of losses. Brent crude futures increased to $79.89 per barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose to $75.59. Gold prices also edged up to $2385.51.

China’s May exports rose by 7.6 per cent and imports increased by 1.8 per cent, surpassing forecasts. The trade surplus expanded to $82.62 billion, with the US surplus reaching $30.8 billion in May, reflecting diverse recovery speeds in China’s $18.6 trillion economy.

Japan saw the first rise in household spending in 14 months, hinting at potential central bank policy reconsideration. April spending was up by 0.5 per cent year-on-year, driven by education, clothing, and shoe purchases, but down by 1.2 per cent compared to the previous month.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept its key interest rate steady amid strong economic growth, enabling a focus on lowering inflation towards the 4 per cent target. The MPC held the repo rate at 6.50 per cent for the eighth time.

Before the market opens, investors’ attention will be on Germany’s April industrial production and the UK house price survey conducted by Halifax. Later in the day, investors are eyeing the US non-farm payrolls for May, expecting 185,000 new jobs and steady wage growth at 3.9 per cent.

The US jobs report is particularly significant as it will be the last major economic indicator before the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting on June 11-12.

Next week, the Bank of Japan will make its policy decision, and there’s growing agreement in the market that the central bank will soon decrease its monthly purchases of government bonds.