Voters walk to vote during early voting in the presidential election at a polling station at the C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. Public Library. in Tampa, Florida, USA, November 1, 2024.
Octavio Jones Reuters
This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our international market newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. As you see? You can subscribe here.
What you need to know today
Only 12,000 jobs were added in the US in October.
The US economy added 12,000 jobs in October, missing the Dow Jones estimate of 100,000 by a wide margin and marking the weakest rate of job creation since December 2020. However, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics noted that the number was affected by the hurricane. country and the Boeing strike in October.
The market dismissed the weak jobs report
Stocks rallied there to start November, led by Amazon and as traders shrugged off disappointing job reports. Amazon rallied 6.2% after the e-commerce giant’s earnings came in above Wall Street expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.69%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.41% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8%.
Berkshire Hathaway’s war chest exceeds $300 billion
Berkshire Hathaway’s cash pile rose to a record $325.2 billion at the end of September, compared to $276.9 billion the previous quarter. This is what happened when Warren Buffett continued to sell stocks and was unable to buy back the stock. Oracle of Omaha sold $36.1 billion worth of stock in the third quarter, including significant stakes in Apple and Bank of America.
Harris gained ground in Iowa
Iowa is not a state that many pollsters predicted will break for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. However, the Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows that the vice president leads Donald Trump in Iowa by 47% to 44% among likely voters, a seven-point shift from September. Iowa holds six electoral votes.
(PRO) makeup Congress can decide stock performance
When all eyes are on who will win the Oval Office after the election night on November 5 in the US, investors will want to pay attention to whether Congress ends up divided or united. That, rather than a sitting president, could hold the key to how the stock performs.
Bottom line
It’s an overused saying, but “the calm before the storm” is probably the best way to describe the start of the week and days ahead of the US election.
After a weekend of arguments from both parties in a critical swing state, the US now stands on the brink of Election Day, with two very different candidates and two very different positions on issues.
Beyond the Oval Office, it is important to remember that the US president does not operate in a vacuum. Control of the House and Senate will also determine the president’s ability to carry out his campaign promises.
For investors, it’s like the last moment before the plane crashes.
Many will be in a wait-and-see mode before returning to the market. With both candidates locked in a dead heat, trying to predict the winner and where the market will go is really like flipping a coin.
Furthermore, when November 5 seems like a big red circle on the calendar everyone is focused on, the world still continues after that date. The Fed’s next two-day meeting takes place on November 6-7, with a Reuters poll of economists expecting a 25 basis point cut.