[Platinum Insights] (8.4.23)

Good morning. 

Market futures are trending up this morning as strong results from retail giant Amazon boosted sentiment, while market participants looked ahead to the crucial U.S. nonfarm payrolls report. 

The US economy is expected to have added 200 thousand jobs, slowing further from post-pandemic peaks but extending the trend of historically strong results that underscore tightness in the labor market and strengthen a hawkish outlook for the Fed. 

The Labor Department reported on Tuesday that there were 1.6 job openings for every unemployed person in June, little changed from May. The abundance of unfilled jobs, together with the Conference Board’s consumer confidence survey in July showing households bullish on the labor market, poses a risk to the unemployment rate. 

Amazon.com Inc surged over +8% in pre-market trading after the e-commerce giant reported better-than-expected Q2 results and delivered upbeat Q3 guidance. On the other hand, Apple edged lower after another quarter of slower sales. Booking Holdings Inc climbed over +11% in pre-market trading after the company reported upbeat Q2 results. DraftKings Inc soared more than +13% after the company reported stronger-than-expected Q2 results and guided for positive adjusted EBITDA in 2024. 

Months after a string of bank failures sent shockwaves through the global banking industry, U.S. banks are still heavily using an emergency lending facility set up by the Federal Reserve to help depository institutions meet withdrawal demands. Fed loans via that new facility, the Bank Term Funding Program, ticked up to $105.7 billion as of Wednesday, Fed data released on Thursday showed, from $105.1 billion a week earlier. 

WTI crude futures rose toward $82 per barrel. Gold steadied above $1,930 an ounce while the yield on the US 10-year Treasury note continued to rise to 4.18%. 

Have a great weekend!