US Stocks Cut Most Losses After ISM

Stocks in the US cut most of the early losses on Thursday, after the ISM Services PMI topped forecasts and pointed to the strongest growth in the US services sector since February 2023, easing concerns about the health of the US economy.

Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq swung around the flatline while the Dow Jones was down nearly 135 points.

Early, initial claims came slightly higher-than-expected while the number of job cuts in the US was little changed in September from August. Also, JOLTS job openings and ADP private employment figures surprised on the upside.

The highly-anticipated jobs report will be released tomorrow.

The odds for a 50bps reduction in the fed funds rate in November hover around 32%, lower than 35% before the ISM release and well below levels above 50% last week.

Consumer discretionary, materials and real estate underperformed while energy, tech and utilities sectors booked the biggest gains.