MARKET WRAPS
Watch For:
Employment Report for November; Canada Labour Force Survey for
November; Ford November sales; Cracker Barrel Old Country Store
earnings
Opening Call:
Today's Headlines/Must Reads
- November Employment Report Will Update on Tightness of Labor
Market
- Cash-Hungry Companies Get Creative Raising Capital
- Blackstone Limits Redemptions From Real Estate Vehicle, Stock
Sinks
- DOJ Watchdog Calls for Independent FTX Probe in Bankruptcy
- Chinese Solar Manufacturers Dodged U.S. Tariffs, Commerce
Probe Finds
Follow WSJ markets coverage here .
Stock futures were steady on Friday as traders awaited the key
nonfarm jobs report, which is expected to show a slowdown in both
employment growth and pay.
The Labor Department is expected to report 200,000 new jobs were
created in November, which would be the weakest showing in nearly
two years. Average hourly pay is expected to ease to a 0.3% monthly
rate.
"Today's job report will be crucial as it should provide
investors with more hints on whether the Fed can really slow the
pace of future rate hikes, or not," ActivTrades said.
Stocks to Watch
Aterian raised its revenue outlook for the fourth quarter based
on a significant rise in Cyber Monday sales on its consumer
products platform. Shares rose 4.5% in the after hours.
Marvell Technology posted disappointing third-quarter results,
below consensus estimates. Shares dropped nearly 7% in after-hours
trading.
Smartsheet reported better-than-expected quarterly results and
guidance. Its shares rose 9% premarket.
UiPath shares rose 10% premarket after it issued revenue
guidance for the current quarter above analysts' estimates.
Ulta Beauty reported higher third-quarter sales and raised its
full-year outlook. Its shares gained 0.4% ahead of the bell.
Veeva Systems issued disappointing fourth-quarter guidance.
Shares initially dropped 8% in after-hours trading before
recovering.
Zscaler said that deals are taking months longer than usual to
close and provided guidance slightly above analysts' forecasts. Its
shares dropped 9% premarket.
Economic Insight
Moody's said China's financial system is exposed to rising risks
amid the country's property woes and economic slowdown.
"Although the authorities continue to have tools to prevent a
systemic financial crisis, some of these buffers are weakening, and
could pose risks if the property downturn endures," Moody's
said.
China's well-capitalized large banks can absorb significant
losses, but the smaller banks are much more exposed to the property
downturn, according to Moody's.
Forex:
The dollar hit its lowest in more than five months against a
basket of currencies and the euro, as the pace of Fed interest-rate
rises looks likely to slow, but the greenback's fall may not be as
smooth as its rise was previously, Swissquote Bank said.
It noted the market's pricing of the peak in U.S. rates fell to
4.9% this week, but the Fed has indicated rates will probably go
beyond 5%.
"Any piece of news or data that would rectify the Fed pricing
could reverse the dollar's latest losses."
Read Weak Jobs Data More Likely to Move Dollar Than Strong
Data
The euro rose to a five-month high against the dollar as markets
seem to be ignoring the risks surrounding the energy crisis, ING
said.
"The recovery in business sentiment in the eurozone has
undoubtedly been the result of lower gas prices, which have
benefitted from mild weather in Europe," ING said.
TTF natural gas contracts are trading at one-month highs and
could see further upside volatility in the near-term as
temperatures in northern Europe are expected to fall, ING said.
While EUR/USD could rise to 1.0600 in the near-term, a
significant recovery in gas prices would make the pair's rally
unsustainable.
ING also said sterling could rise further against the dollar if
the nonfarm payrolls report fails to reverse the U.S. currency's
downward trend, but the pound's gains will be limited, ING
said.
The data may indicate the jobs market remained extremely tight,
which may halt the dollar's fall but fail to invert it with the
balance of risks "titled to the downside," ING said.
GBP/USD could rise to around 1.2300-1.2350 after the data, ING
said. However, it isn't factoring in the implications of rebounding
gas prices and weak economic fundamentals so a "return to 1.1500
around the turn of the year seems appropriate."
Bonds:
The sharp rally in Treasurys would suggest a turn is underway
but it might not be the case just yet, Societe Generale said.
Jerome Powell is hopeful that inflation will moderate, "but it
is too early to call the turn," SocGen said. "With expectations for
75-100 bps in rate hikes at upcoming [Fed] meetings, the rally in
bonds seems a bit premature."
SocGen expects the 10-year Treasury yield at 3.65% at the end of
the first quarter of 2023, before a gradual easing to 3.5% by end
of the second quarter, 3.4% by end of the third quarter and 3.25%
by end of the final quarter.
SocGen also said the 10-year Treasury-German Bund yield
spread--currently 172 bps--could narrow close to 100 basis points
in 2023.
Expectations that core inflation has likely peaked while this
isn't the case for eurozone core HICP is one of the reasons why
SocGen expects the spread to narrow.
A further reason is that the European Central Bank has more
interest-rate rises to deliver into the spring, while the Fed is
already "ahead of the game," with the EUR real curve consistent
with a much more accommodative policy stance.
The ECB is also about to start quantitative tightening, while
the Fed may consider its own QT, SocGen said.
Read Bond Yields Fall as Inflation Fears Ease
Energy:
Oil prices held minor gains in Europe as investors awaited the
outcome of Sunday's OPEC+ meeting, with expectations the cartel is
unlikely to reverse policy course and keep production flat.
This "despite expectations for a drop in Russian production
following the imposition of the E.U.'s ban on seaborne imports of
Russian crude and the G-7 price cap," Fitch said.
Traders will also keep a close watch on the upcoming jobs report
for further clues about the health of the economy.
Read OPEC+ Likely Shy of Spotlight Ahead of Russian Price Cap,
EU Ban
Metals:
Base metals edged higher in early London trade, with gold
futures little changed.
Macro factors have been a heavy influence in metals pricing this
year, and a weaker dollar on top of a change in the Fed's rate
stance has helped copper rally 5% this week, while gold is up
3.5%.
Covid-19 controls in China are also easing in China, further
helping metals demand, Marex said.
TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES
Elon Musk's SpaceX Wins Go-Ahead for 7,500 More Starlink
Satellites, After Aiming for 30,000
U.S. regulators granted SpaceX permission to launch up to 7,500
upgraded satellites for its Starlink internet business, but
withheld approval for a larger network sought by the Elon Musk-led
business.
The Federal Communications Commission said Thursday that
deploying more SpaceX satellites would be in the public interest,
but it stopped short of immediately clearing the nearly 30,000
satellites it requested. The agency's order, however, left the door
open for further deployments by the company in the future.
Blackstone Limits Redemptions From Real Estate Vehicle, Stock
Sinks
Blackstone Inc. shares took a big hit after the investing
giant's real-estate fund aimed at wealthy individuals said it would
limit redemptions.
Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust Inc., more commonly known as
BREIT, said Thursday in a letter posted to its website that the
amount of withdrawals requested in October exceeded its monthly
limit of 2% of its net-asset value and its quarterly threshold of
5%.
Layoffs Hit White-Collar Workers as Amazon, Walmart, Others Cut
Jobs
Recent rounds of layoffs at large U.S. companies mark a
departure from the usual pattern as executives navigate fears of an
economic slowdown: This time, white-collar workers have been among
the first and hardest hit.
Demand has fallen sharply for professionals in technology,
legal, scientific and finance fields, and companies that ramped up
staffing during the pandemic, including tech firms, are slowing
down hiring or cutting jobs as they close down some projects or
scale back others.
DOJ Watchdog Calls for Independent FTX Probe in Bankruptcy
A U.S. Justice Department bankruptcy watchdog called for an
independent investigation into FTX's collapse, comparing the
cryptocurrency platform's sudden failure to the fall of Lehman
Brothers.
U.S. Trustee Andrew Vara, an official at the Justice Department
unit monitoring bankruptcy courts, asked the judge overseeing FTX's
chapter 11 case to appoint an independent examiner to provide a
transparent account of FTX's failure because of the wider
implications the exchange's collapse has on the crypto
industry.
November Employment Report Will Update on Tightness of U.S.
Labor Market
Friday's employment report will reveal how the labor market
fared in November amid rising interest rates and high
inflation.
The job market has remained resilient this year, with employers
still seeking to hire despite an uncertain economic outlook and
elevated recession fears. Low unemployment and wage gains have
helped fuel consumer spending, the economy's main engine.
Gas Prices Are Dropping: Here's How Much Lower They Might Go
Gas prices are well below record highs hit earlier this year.
Analysts think they could fall even farther.
The average cost of regular unleaded gasoline fell to $3.45 a
gallon on Thursday, according to OPIS, an energy-data and analytics
provider. That is among the lowest levels since Russia's invasion
of Ukraine in February and a more than 30% drop from a record above
$5 in June, according to OPIS.
When It Comes to Investments, the VIP Section Isn't Always
Better
Congratulations. You've worked hard and made some money, and now
you have access to a new class of investments. But when the velvet
rope opens up, it can also close behind you.
On Thursday, investors in the $69 billion nontraded Blackstone
Real Estate Income Trust, known as BREIT, were informed that their
requests to take cash out of it had been limited. That highlighted
the double-edged sword many relatively well-heeled investors are
facing as they try to diversify their portfolios in a complex,
rising-rate environment.
Cash-Hungry Companies Get Creative Raising Capital
The end of the era of easy money is forcing companies that need
cash to get creative.
Dozens of companies have recently raised money through so-called
structured private funding rounds, and bankers and lawyers say
there are many more in the works.
Chinese Solar Manufacturers Dodged U.S. Tariffs, Probe Finds
WASHINGTON-Four leading Chinese solar-cell manufacturers
circumvented U.S. tariffs by routing some of their operations
through Southeast Asia, a Commerce Department investigation found,
according to people familiar with it.
The preliminary findings from the closely watched probe-expected
to be unveiled Friday-are likely to accelerate importers' race to
find alternative sources either domestically or from other places
abroad to meet soaring demand for solar panels.
Ukraine Hunts the World for Parts to Fix Crippled Energy
Grid
As Russia targets Ukraine's energy grid with missiles and
drones, Kyiv is running out of vital parts needed to repair a
network that provides electricity for homes, businesses and
hospitals.
Moscow has deliberately attacked Ukraine's ability to generate
and transport power in a bid to sap the country's morale, leaving
millions without heat and light as temperatures fall below
freezing.
Kanye West Suspended From Twitter After Swastika Tweet
Twitter Inc. again suspended Kanye West's account after the
musician and designer posted a swastika in a tweet that the
social-media platform's owner, Elon Musk, said violated its
rules.
Mr. West, who now legally goes by Ye and had recently returned
from a previous suspension, on Thursday posted a picture of a
swastika merged with the Star of David.
Biden Calls for South Carolina to Be First in Democratic
Presidential Nomination Process
WASHINGTON-President Biden is suggesting a shake-up in the order
of states that hold the first Democratic Party presidential
nominating contests, proposing that South Carolina instead of Iowa
be placed first in 2024, Democrats briefed on the plan said.
Mr. Biden would like to see New Hampshire and Nevada go next, on
the same day, followed by Georgia and then Michigan on different,
later days, these people said. With the exception of South
Carolina, all of the states he is suggesting for early primary
activity are typically battlegrounds in presidential general
elections.
Senate Votes 80-15 to Pass Bill Blocking Nationwide Railroad
Strike
WASHINGTON-The Senate voted to intervene to prevent a nationwide
strike by railroad workers while rejecting a proposal to give them
expanded paid sick leave, with lawmakers saying they reluctantly
heeded President Biden's call to resolve the long-running labor
dispute.
In a 80-15 vote, with one senator voting present, lawmakers
agreed to force unions to adopt an earlier labor agreement mediated
by the administration. The measure now goes to the White House, and
Mr. Biden said he would sign it as soon as it got to his desk.
Write to paul.larkins@dowjones.com TODAY IN CANADA
Earnings:
Canadian Western Bank 4Q
Goodfood Market 4Q
Economic Indicators (ET):
0830 Nov November estimates of production of principal field
crops
0830 Nov Labour Force Survey
Stocks to Watch:
Advantage Energy: 2023 Cap Program to Be Focused on Prudent Cash
Flow Per Shr Growth via High Rate-of-Return Development Drilling
Into Existing Infrastructure; Top-Line Production Planned to Grow
by 11%; All Free Cash Flow Will Remain Allocated to Shr Buyback
Program; Sees 2023 Average Production 59,000-62,500 BOE/D
Advantage Energy Sees Annual Production Growing by at Least 10%
in Each of Next Three Years, Exceeding 75,000 BOE/D by 2025;
Expects Cash Used in Investing Activities to Remain Between C$250M
and C$300M a Year; Will Plan to Renew Normal Course Issuer Bid in
April; Additional Substantial Issuer Bids May Be Required to
Achieve Net Debt Target
Advantage Energy Expects to Not Be Subject to Cash Taxes Until
2024 Due to More Than C$1B in High-Quality Tax Pools; Plans to
Drill About 26 Net Wells Annually to Achieve Growth Targets
---
AutoCanada Acquires Ontario-Based Dealership Sterling Honda;
Acquired Dealership Generates More Than C$65M in Annual Revenue;
Transaction to Be Funded From Drawdown of Credit Facility;
Transaction Expected to Be Accretive to 2022 Earnings
---
Theratechnologies: Decided to Pause the Enrollment of Patients
in Phase 1 Clinical Trial of TH1902; Voluntarily Made the Decision
to Pause Enrollment and Revisit the Study Design After Consulting
With Investigators; Efficacy Results Observed Thus Far Were Not
Convincing Enough to Pursue Enrolling Patients and Did Not Outweigh
the Adverse Events Seen in Some Patients
Expected Major Events for Friday
00:01/UK: Nov BRC-Sensormatic IQ Footfall Monitor
07:00/GER: Oct Foreign trade price indices
07:00/GER: Oct Foreign Trade
07:45/FRA: Oct Industrial production index
09:30/UK: 3Q Bank of England external business stats
13:30/CAN: Nov November estimates of production of principal
field crops
13:30/CAN: Nov Labour Force Survey
13:30/US: Nov U.S. Employment Report
All times in GMT. Powered by Onclusive and Dow Jones.
Expected Earnings for Friday
Canadian Western Bank (CWB.T) is expected to report $0.79 for
4Q.
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc (CBRL) is expected to
report $1.13 for 1Q.
Ford Motor Company (F) is expected to report.
Friedman Industries (FRD) is expected to report for 2Q.
Genesco Inc (GCO) is expected to report for 3Q.
Kirkland's Inc (KIRK) is expected to report $-0.19 for 3Q.
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ANALYST RATINGS ACTIONS
Ally Financial Inc Cut to Underweight From Equal-Weight by
Morgan Stanley
B&G Foods Cut to Underweight From Equal-Weight by Consumer
Edge Research
BioXcel Therapeutics Raised to Neutral From Sell by Goldman
Sachs
Capital One Cut to Underweight From Equal-Weight by Morgan
Stanley
CrowdStrike Holdings Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by
Wolfe Research
G-III Apparel Cut to Neutral From Buy by CL King
G-III Apparel Cut to Neutral From Overweight by Piper
Sandler
Hubbell Cut to Underperform From Peer Perform by Wolfe
Research
Lennox Raised to Overweight From Equal-Weight by Wells Fargo
Leslie's Cut to Hold From Buy by Stifel
Navient Raised to Equal-Weight From Underweight by Morgan
Stanley
Oncocyte Cut to Hold From Buy by Lake Street
Oncorus Cut to Neutral From Buy by Chardan Capital
ONE Gas Cut to Sell From Neutral by Guggenheim
Otis Worldwide Cut to Equal-Weight From Overweight by
Barclays
Parsons Cut to Underperform From Neutral by B of A
Securities
Regal Rexnord Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by Wolfe
Research
Regions Financial Raised to Outperform From Peer Perform by
Wolfe Research
Saia Cut to Underperform From Neutral by B of A Securities
Sirius XM Cut to Sell From Buy by Citigroup
SpartanNash Raised to Buy From Neutral by Northcoast
Research
SQZ Biotechnologies Cut to Underperform From Buy by B of A
Securities
Synchrony Financial Cut to Underweight From Equal-Weight by
Morgan Stanley
US Bancorp Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by Wolfe
Research
Vertiv Holdings Raised to Outperform From Peer Perform by Wolfe
Research
Victoria's Secret Cut to Neutral From Overweight by JP
Morgan
Vontier Cut to Peer Perform From Outperform by Wolfe
Research
Zebra Cut to Underperform From Peer Perform by Wolfe
Research
This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal
newsletter published earlier today.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 02, 2022 06:20 ET (11:20 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.