May Jobs, Powell Speaks, Lululemon: 3 Things to Watch By Investing.com

By Christiana Sciaudone

Investing.com — Markets closed lower on Thursday even amid good jobs news. 

The job market appears to be gaining momentum with jobless claims and private job gains data coming in better-than-expected ahead of the nonfarm payrolls report due Friday.

Will the Fed start talking tapering at its June 15 meeting…?   

Financials were higher as investors bet on a favorable backdrop for stocks, with the inevitable steepening in the yield curve as the Fed tightens policy.

Energy stocks rose thanks to oil prices, while tech slid.   

Can we not mention AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE:AMC)? It’s up, it’s down, it’s rollercoastering us around.      

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden may be open to significant revisions on the size of his infrastructure package and how it would be paid for in order to win Republican backing, The Washington Post reported.

Look forward to summer Friday tomorrow.

Here are three things that could affect markets:

1. Jobs

The U.S. is expected to have added 655,000 jobs in May, but after last month’s massive miss by economists, who knows what the number will be. Nonfarm payrolls came in at 266,000 in April, far below the estimate for 1 million. Consensus calls for the unemployment rate to tick down to 5.9% from 6.1%. The numbers are due at 8:30 AM ET (1230 GMT).

2. Powwow

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will take part in a panel discussion about central banks and climate change with Christine Lagarde of the European Central Bank, Yi Gang of the People’s Bank of China and Francois Villeroy de Galhau of the Bank of France.

3. Down dog or up dog?

Keep an eye on Lululemon Athletica Inc (NASDAQ:LULU) shares after the yoga gear maker reports earnings after the close today. Guidance is the key after the company’s last forecast disappointed.