A difficult start to August! Market hesitates before non-farm data and major financial reports.

The momentum that drove the U.S. stock market to rise nearly 30% from its low point in October last year began to pull back and consolidate at the beginning of August.

Just a few days before the crucial non-farm employment report was released, the data showed a slight decrease in worker demand in the still tense labor market. These numbers were not enough to attract investors, and they still face mixed corporate profit issues. The S&P 500 index closed slightly lower. Bonds fell as the U.S. Treasury prepared to increase the issuance of long-term securities, causing the 30-year bond yield to reach its highest level since November.

As new orders gradually improve, U.S. manufacturing in July seemed to stabilize at a weaker level, while a survey showed that factory employment fell to the lowest level in three years, indicating an acceleration in layoffs.

The number of job openings in the United States in June was basically unchanged from the previous month, according to the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report. As of the end of June, there were 9.58 million job openings, slightly lower than the 9.62 million reported in May. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected the number of job openings in June to be 9.6 million. The report also showed that the number of employees in June was 5.91 million, lower than the 6.23 million in May.

The data reflects a strong but cooling labor market. The previous June employment report showed an increase of 209,000 non-farm employment, a significant decrease from the previous month. Despite being lower than economists' expectations, many still consider this to be a considerable result.

City Index and Forex.com market analyst Fawad Razaqzada said, "Wall Street stocks seem to be taking a breather from their continuous rise." Although many traders are worried about a possible stagnation in the rebound, we may see some downward trends as investors may "stand on the sidelines" before the release of employment data and earnings reports from giants like Apple and Amazon.

In the late trading session, AMD stock rose as the company reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings and announced further progress in the field of artificial intelligence computing. Starbucks shares declined as their quarterly sales fell below analyst expectations, indicating that the growth momentum of the coffee giant may be slowing down amid rising prices and tight finances.

Bank of America strategist Savita Subramanian pointed out that there is currently no reason to be worried about the stock market. Bank of America's sell-side indicator (which tracks stock allocations recommended by sell-side strategists) remains in neutral territory and is closer to a "buy" signal rather than a "sell" signal. "The rise in stock allocations and the decline in bond allocations indicate a reversal of the trend established during 2022.

Strategists at Bespoke Investment Group stated that while the stock market has made progress in the short term, the returns do not look as impressive when viewed from different time frames. Taking the S&P 500 index as an example, it has still risen by about 11% in the past 12 months, but from a two-year perspective, its performance appears much less attractive, only slightly higher than 4%.

Analyst John Stoltzfus of Oppenheimer Asset Management has raised the target for the S&P 500 index to a new high, a day after the bearish sentiment of market major player Morgan Stanley analyst Michael Wilson was not as strong as usual.

John Stoltzfus currently expects the S&P 500 index to reach 4,900 points by the end of the year, with a further 7% upside. This target would mark a new record for the index and contradicts the bearish predictions of Wall Street figures such as Michael Wilson from Morgan Stanley, Marko Kolanovic from J.P. Morgan, and Michael Hartnett from Bank of America.

Next Trading Day Focus, Barometer:

05:15 US ADP Employment Change (thousands) for July

07:30 USA EIA Crude Oil Inventory Change (10,000 barrels) (to 0728)

18:30 Australia Q2 Seasonally Adjusted Retail Sales (QoQ)

18:45 China July Caixin Services Purchasing Managers' Index

China July Caixin Composite Purchasing Managers' Index

23:00 Germany June Seasonally Adjusted Trade Balance (billion euros)