Before the Open (Jul 8)

Good morning. Happy Friday. Happy Employment Numbers Day.
The Asian/Pacific markets closed mostly down. Japan dropped more than 1%; Hong Kong, China, Singapore and South Korea were also weak. Europe is currently mostly up. Italy is up more than 2%; Germany, France, Finland and Spain are up more than 1%; Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden and Portugal are also doing well. Norway is down more than 1%. Prior to the release of the latest employment data, futures in the States pointed towards a positive open for the cash market.
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The dollar is down. Oil and copper are up. Gold and silver are down. Bonds are mixed.
Here are the employment numbers…
unemployment rate: 4.9% (was 4.7% last month)
nonfarm payrolls: +287K
private payrolls:
average workweek: flat at 34.4 hours
hourly wages: up 0.1% to $25.61
labor participation rate: 62.7% (up from 62.6%)
April job gain raised from 123K to 144K.
May job gain cut from 38K to 11K.
On the news, S&P futures jumped from being up 5 to being up 15. The dollar also jumped while gold and silver dropped. Oil dropped but has since recovered its loss and is up about 65 cents about 40 minutes before the open.
Going back to the last day of June, this is what the S&P has done. Not shown is the vertical post-Brexit drop and subsequent vertical rally. Since then, the market has quietly traded in range. As of this writing, S&P futures are up about 15, so the index will open somewhere near the high of the range.

I looked at many charts last night and didn’t find much worth buying. The groups that have provided many great opportunities (gold, silver, utilities, REITs) are either too far extended or have neutralized. Otherwise I saw many charts there were just bouncing around and very noncommittal.
Call it the summer doldrums if you wish. There just aren’t many patterns that jump of the screen yelling “trade me.” Don’t force things right now. More after the open.
Stock headlines from barchart.com…
Molson Coors Brewing (TAP -1.40%) was upgraded to ‘Buy’ from ‘Neutral’ at Bryan Garnier & Cie with a 6-month price target of $110.
GrubHub (GRUB +0.78%) was rated a new ‘Outperform’ at Wedbush with a 12-month price target of $40.
Transocean Ltd (RIG +0.50%) was downgraded to ‘Sell’ from ‘Hold’ at Cananccord Genuity.
McDonald’s (MCD +0.24%) said it sees a Q2 pretax charge of $235 million, or 20 cents a share, on refranchising and G&A programs along with the move of its corporate headquarters.
United Technologies’ (UTX +0.58%) Pratt Unit was awarded a contract by the U.S. Navy valued at $1.5 billion for 99 total engines for the Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft.
The Gap (GPS -0.73%) climbed 4% in after-hours trading after Retail Metrics reported that Jun comparable same-store-sales were up +2% y/y, better than expectations of down -3.6% y/y.
PriceSmart (PSMT -2.90%) fell over 4% in after-hours trading after it reported Q3 EPS od 55 cents, well below consensus of 70 cents.
Capital One Financial (COF +1.00%) was upgraded to ‘Buy’ from ‘Neutral’ at D.A. Davidson with a price target of $76.
WD-40 (WDFC +0.28%) slid over 3% in after-hours trading after it cut its view on 2016 revenue to $378 million-$383 million from an April 7 estimate of $385 million-$394 million.
The $360 million punitive award in the trial alleging defects in Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ -0.11%) hip implants was cut to $10 million after a Texas judge applied a cap on punitive damages.
Barracuda Networks (CUDA +3.40%) jumped 15% in after-hours trading after it raised guidance on fiscal 2017 adjusted EPS to 54 cents-59 cents from an April 26 estimate of 45 cents-50 cents.
Roche Holding AG (RHHBY -0.15%) said it received FDA approval for its test for human papillomavirus that can be used with cervical cells obtained for a Pap test for use with SurePath Preservative Fluid.
Eleven Biotherapeutics (EBIO -3.45%) surged over 20% in after-hours trading after it said its IND application for EDI-031 for the treatment of ocular diseases has become effective.
Wednesday’s Key Earnings
Walgreens (NASDAQ:WBA) -2.4% on Brexit, Rite Aid deal uncertainty.
Today’s Economic Calendar
8:30 Non-farm payrolls
1:00 PM Baker-Hughes Rig Count
3:00 PM Consumer Credit
Today’s Earnings here
Other…
today’s upgrades/downgrades from briefing.com
this week’s Earnings
this week’s Economic Numbers