Day trading pre-market open January 5

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome and @Patterns.


Outlook for the day: Cautiously positive as investors eye a rebound after two days of losses.

ASX futures: up 21 points or 0.28%


Overnight themes:

• Wall Street's main stock indices finish mixed as stronger-than-expected payrolls and unemployment claims data imply rate cuts may start later this year than previously anticipated.
• The Dow weathers a late fade to cling to its first rise of 2024. The Nasdaq logs its first five-session losing streak since October 2022. The S&P 500 declines for a fourth day. Earlier, European shares bounced off three-week lows.
• Gains in the S&P 500's health, industrial and financial sectors help offset declines across the rest of the market. Energy, tech and other growth-focused sectors fall furthest.
• Treasury yields rise as two reports underline strength in the labour market, potentially delaying the first rate cut of 2024. First-time claims for unemployment benefits fall to a near three-month low. Private payrolls increase by 164,000 last month, the biggest rise in four months. The yield on 10-year US treasuries retests yesterday's three-week high.
• "Today's numbers... weren't something that says we need to cut rates tomorrow... So what you're seeing is people resetting expectations as to when those rate cuts will start" - Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading (per Reuters).
• The odds on a March rate cut have drifted lower in recent days, but remain around 66%, according to CME's FedWatch tool. Markets have priced in 93% chance of a cut by May.
• Insurers outperform after a broker upgrade for Allstate. Banks rally ahead of the launch of a new quarterly earnings season next week.
• Apple falls 1.27% after Piper Sandler follows Barclays in downgrading the tech giant. The iPhone maker has been one of the biggest drags on the market this year to date, falling more than 5%.
• Iron ore rises for a fourth session after China's central bank pumps liquidity to the banking sector to support the government's "three major projects" this year: affordable housing, urban village regeneration and public infrastructure. China-traded ore gains 0.3%.
• Oil turns lower after US data shows a sharp weekly increase in gasoline stockpiles. Gasoline and distillate inventories both increased by more than 10 million barrels, roughly four times as much as analysts expected. Brent crude declines 0.84%.

Key events today:

• US December jobs report - tonight

S&P 500: down 16 points or 0.34%

Dow: up 10 points or 0.03%

Nasdaq: down 82 points or 0.56%

Dollar: down 0.47% to 67.03 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): up 0.3% to US$142.09

Brent crude: down 66 US cents or 0.84% to US$77.59

Gold: up US$7.50 or 0.4% to US$2,050.30

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: down 0.09%

Bitcoin: down 0.4% to US$42,782

Copper (LME): down 0.42% to US$8,481.50

Nickel (LME): down 1.83% to US$16,090

Uranium: steady at US$92.50

Lithium carbonate (China spot): down 0.29% to US$13,536.93

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: down 1.56%

BHP: down 0.87% (US); down 0.74% (UK)

Rio Tinto: down 0.69% (US); down 0.42% (UK)