All eyes are on the June employment report heading into Friday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEX: ^DJI) shrugged off some good news, including an employment report from ADP and an anticipated interest rate cut from the European Central Bank.
The Labor Department this morning said the U.S. economy added just 80,000 jobs in June, shy of market expectations of 100,000, while the unemployment rate held steady at 8.2%. Job creation has averaged just 75,000 per month in the second quarter after a first quarter that saw an average of 226,000 new jobs each month. The news sent Dow futures tumbling 0.6% before trading opened.
Around the world, markets were down in Europe and mixed overnight in Asia. Spanish borrowing costs jumped as yields on the 10-year treasury once again topped 7%, which is considered an unsustainable rate for the country to stay solvent. The International Monetary Fund also said it would lower its growth forecast for the global economy from 3.5% to a rate to be announced in 10 days. The IMF had already decreased its projection for U.S. growth a tick from 2.1% to 2%.
Samsung estimated it would post record-breaking profits in its second quarter, with a 79% jump to around $6 billion, thanks to the sharp rise in Galaxy smartphone sales. However, shares of the Korean company closed lower due to a diminished revenue outlook.
Other stocks to watch today include JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM). A judge has ordered the bank to turn over 25 emails as part of an investigation into whether it manipulated electricity markets in the Midwest and California. The judge's order came in response to a petition filed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and may drum up more bad press for the Wall Street institution after its multibillion-dollar trading loss in May.
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