Wall St The Week Ahead: US awaits wave of new statistics
WALL Street is braced for a wave of economic reports this week, including the August jobs report, which might prove decisive in finding whether the economy is strong enough for the Federal Reserve to dial back its bond purchases in mid-September. However, The US market is closed today for Labor Day.
Anxiety about the Fed reducing its $85bn monthly stimulus has hurt the stock market, which recorded its steepest monthly fall since May 2012. Speculation on the timing of Fed action has triggered a bond market sell-off that sent mortgage rates to two-year highs.
Economists forecast domestic employers likely hired 180,000 workers in August, more than 162,000 in July, while the jobless rate likely held steady at 7.4 per cent, a four-year low.
Economic releases will include the latest readings on vehicle sales and national factory and service activities.