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U.S. stocks extended declines Monday, while the dollar inched higher against its global peers as investors braced for a key week of jobs data while could test market bets on a near-term rate cut and pressure the developing end-of-year rally.
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Updated at 1:08 PM EST
Yield creep
Treasury yields, the powering driver to much of the November rally, are moving higher in Monday afternoon trading as traders take down a heavy slate of new corporate bond sales, including from General Motors GM, that would total up to $35 billion by the end of the month.
Benchmark 10-year note yields were last marked 5 basis points higher on the session at 4.291% while 2-year notes were pegged 6 basis points higher at 4.662%.
Updated at 12:13 PM EST
Mid-day malaise
Tech is leading firmly to the downside, with chip and mega-cap names leading the way, although the S&P 500 has pared some of its earlier slump and was last marked 31 points lower, or 0.68%, on the session.
European stocks ended only modestly lower, with the Stoxx 600 down 0.09% in Frankfurt and the FTSE 100 ending 0.22% lower in London.
Updated at 9:54 AM EST
Chipping-in to the downside
Nvidia (NVDA) -) shares are leading the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq, lower in early Monday trading, falling 3.6% following weekend comments from U.S. Trade Secretary Gina Raimondo that suggests the chipmaker's effort to avoid export restrictions on AI technology to China could face increased scrutiny.
The S&P 500 was marked 44 points lower, or nearly 1%, while the Nasdaq was down 225 points, or 1.6%, in the opening hours of trading.
Related: Nvidia has a massive problem following U.S. official's comments
Updated at 9:54 AM EST
Steady for now, higher for later?
Stocks are holding steady in early Monday trading, after opening a tad softer at the bell, but markets are still seeing some compelling reasons to be cheerful heading into December, which is traditionally one of the strongest months of the year.
The S&P 500 was marked 25 points lower, or 0.55%, in the opening half hour of trading while the Dow slipped 44 points and the Nasdaq gave back 140 points.
The prices of Bitcoin, oil and gold are attracting attention this morning:
— Mohamed A. El-Erian (@elerianm) December 4, 2023
At over $41,000, #Bitcoin is benefiting from a general “risk on” environment and a weak dollar.
#Oil is lower, brushing aside the initial reaction to last week’s news on production cuts.
#Gold is… pic.twitter.com/1914FDGkih
Updated at 8:58 AM EST
Soft open
Stocks are extending modest declines into the opening bell, with futures tied to the S&P 500 indicating a 27 point pullback and those tied to the Dow suggesting a 120 point decline. The Nasdaq is called 120 lower as well.
Updated at 7:45 AM EST
Tesla's China problem
Tesla (TSLA) -) shares were slipping lower in pre-market trading, down 0.25% at $238.25 each, following official figures from China showing the biggest slump in domestic sales in nearly a year, underscoring the challenge it faces in meeting its 1.8 million 2023 delivery goal.
Related: Tesla China sales slump as rival BYD grabs market share
Stock Market Today
Stocks ended higher on Friday, lifting the S&P 500 to its highest close of the year and extending one of the best November rallies on record into the final month of the year.
The gains came, however, even as Federal Chairman Jerome Powell attempted to lean against market bets on a springtime rate hike. He told an event at Spelman College in Atlanta that inflation risks remain elevated and that it was too soon to begin speculating about easing interest-rate policy.
Despite that warning, markets see at least five quarter-percentage-point rate reductions from the Fed next year, beginning in March, as the economy slows and inflation cools.
Limited public comment from the Fed
Fed officials will be restricted in their public comment until their next rate-setting meeting, which begins December 12, which likely leaves markets to focus on this week's parade of job-market data, including Friday's November employment report, to support the current rate forecasts.
The Labor Department on Tuesday will publish its closely tracked reading of October job openings, with ADP's November employment report following Wednesday and the official nonfarm-payroll report arriving Friday.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields were last trading at 4.247% heading into the Monday session, little changed from last week's levels, while 2-year notes eased to 4.602%.
Gold at record and bitcoin at 19-month peak $41K
The larger moves, however, were in gold and bitcoin, with the bullion hitting a fresh all-time high of $2,135 per ounce in overnight trading and the world's biggest digital currency touched a 19-month peak past $41,000, as investors looked to shelter themselves from a weakened U.S. dollar.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six global currency peers, was marked 0.12% higher at 103.390 in early Monday trading, but has fallen some 3.3% since stocks began their current really in late October.
Stocks are set for a modestly weaker open Monday, with futures contracts tied to the S&P 500 priced for a 19 point decline. Those linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which closed at a January high of 36,245.50 points, were set for a 75 point pullback. The tech-focused Nasdaq, meanwhile, is looking at a 90 point decline at the start of trading.
Oil prices in the red
In other markets, global oil prices were firmly in the red Monday, with little impact from reports Iran-backed Houthi rebels orchestrated a drone attack on two Israeli ships in the Red Sea, ultimately leading to an intervention from the U.S.S. Carney.
Brent crude contracts for February delivery were marked 94 cents lower at $77.92 per barrel while WTI contracts for January fell 91 cents to $73.15 per barrel.
In overseas markets, European stocks were modestly lower to start the week, with the Stoxx 600 down 0.05% in early Frankfurt trading. Investors tracked both U.S. futures and a host of regional economic data later this week.
Overnight in Asia, the regionwide MSCI ex-Japan index slipped 0.11% into the close of trading, with stocks in Hong Kong down 1.1%. That's even as indebted China-based property developer Evergrande Group won the right to a hearing on its eventual restructuring in late January.
Stocks in Japan, meanwhile, fell 0.6% as the yen extended its recent run of gains, rising to a near three-month high against the dollar.
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