The gradual cooling in the labor market desired by the Fed has occurred

Asian stock indices rose after data signaling a gradual cooling of the US labor market supported expectations that the Fed would cut interest rates next year.

Following the S&P 500 index finishing Tuesday with little change, US and European index futures are gaining value this morning.

The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds rose 3 basis points this morning to 4.19% following a 9-basis-point drop on Tuesday. The Bloomberg Dollar Index, which rose 0.23% on Tuesday, is flat in the new trading session.

COOLING IN THE US LABOR MARKET

Ahead of the critical non-farm payroll and unemployment rate data to be released in the US on Friday, the JOLTS data signaled that the gradual cooling the Fed wants to see in the labor market has occurred.

The number of new job openings in the country fell to 8.7 million in October, the lowest level since the beginning of 2021. The September data was also revised downward from 9.55 million to 9.35 million. The October figure also remained below the expectation of 9.3 million.

US November ISM data also indicated that inflation in the service sector has begun to soften.

Wells Fargo & Co. economists Tim Quinlan and Shannon Seery Grein stated that these two data points show that the Fed's employment and price stability goals are moving toward their long-term estimated levels. Noting that "while prices continue to rise, they are doing so at a slower pace," the economists assessed that "the labor market is also becoming less tight, and therefore, the upward pressure on wages is decreasing."

News Source: 12punto