US stock futures were flat on Tuesday, struggling to shake off a losing session as investors counted down to the delayed release of the November jobs report, seen as crucial to the path of interest rates next year.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) remained slightly below the flat line, while those linked to the S&P 500 (ES=F) fell 0.1%. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq (NQ=F) fell 0.2%, after the index started the week with a slight loss.
Technology led Monday’s losses, with AI jitters continuing to reverberate around big names like Oracle ( ORCL ) and Broadcom ( AVGO ) following their earnings results last week.
That worry will be put on the back burner to begin on Tuesday, as all eyes on Wall Street turn to the latest monthly employment figures. The late November nonfarm payrolls report will fill an economic data gap caused by the US government shutdown — and fuel the big year-end debate over whether the Federal Reserve will halt or accelerate policy easing in 2026.
A plurality of traders are betting on two rate cuts by the Fed next year, as policymakers focus on addressing the labor market rather than dealing with sticky inflation. The November report is expected to show a lackluster gain of 40,000 jobs when it goes to print at 8:30 am ET., while unemployment is seen at 4.4%. Investors also get an estimate on October wages, but only partially thanks to the US shutdown.
Employment data will set the stage for another release on Thursday, with consumer inflation numbers for November set for release. Together, the two reports form part of the “large amount of data” Fed President Jerome Powell indicated that the central bank will study before its next rate decision in January.
A catch-up report on October retail sales is also on Tuesday’s paper, as the first look at US manufacturing and services activity in December.
In corporates, shares of Ford ( F ) rose in premarket trading after the automaker said it would take a $19.5 billion charge as part of a pivot away from electric vehicles. Later, the focus will turn to Lennar (LEN) earnings due after the market close.
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Broadcom stock extends its slide
Broadcom ( AVGO ) stock moved 1% lower in premarket trading, putting shares on track to extend their slide for a fourth day.
The stock has fallen 16% in the past three days, including a 5.5% drop on Monday, following the company’s earnings. While Broadcom beat Wall Street estimates for its fiscal fourth quarter, investors viewed the chip developer’s AI backlog — $73 billion over the next 18 months — as a bit light.
That helped catalyze Broadcom’s worst three-day decline since March 2020, which in turn helped spur a selloff in tech names on Monday.
However, year to date, Broadcom stock is on a remarkable run and is on track to return 46%.
Kraft Heinz names former Kellanova boss Steve Cahillane as new CEO
Kraft Heinz (KHC) stock rose higher on Tuesday after it announced that Steve Cahillane will become the company’s next CEO, effective January 1, 2026, according to a statement from ketchup maker Heinz.
Steve Cahillane, formerly the CEO of Kellanova (K), will also join the company’s Board of Directors. The outgoing leader, Carlos Abrams-Rivera, will step down on January 1 and will serve as a consultant to the company until March 6, 2026, the statement said.
Kraft Heinz announced in September that it plans to split into two companies. The group’s stock price has fallen 22% so far this year.
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Good morning. Here’s what’s happening today.
Oil prices fall as hopes grow for peace talks in Ukraine
Oil continued to slide on Tuesday amid concerns about oversupply and hopes of progress in Ukraine peace talks.
Brent crude futures (BZ=F) fell 1.4% to break below $60 a barrel for the first time since May, trading near their lowest since 2021. Meanwhile, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) futures fell roughly 1.6% to just under $56 a barrel.
Bloomberg reports:
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Pre-market trend tickers: Roku, Gitlab, and Zillow
Year (OF THE YEAR) shares rose 4% before the bell following Morgan Stanley’s upgrade to Overweight from Equal Weight, along with a price target increase to $135 from $85.
Gitlab (GTLB) The stock fell 3% in premarket trading on Tuesday after being downgraded by analysts at KeyBanc, who cut their rating to Sector Weight from Overweight.
Zillow (Z) the stock fell 2% in premarket trading. The housing app closed down 8% on Monday, following news that Google (GOOG) will begin testing real estate listings in its search results.
Nasdaq seeks SEC approval for 23-hour weekday trading
Bloomberg reports:
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Bitcoin breaks $86,000 while sinking to year lows
Bloomberg reports:
Bitcoin (BTC-USD) has dropped below $86,000 for the first time in two weeks, with investor sentiment weakening as the largest cryptocurrency slips deeper into bear market territory.
Bitcoin has been nearing the lower limit of its recent trading range with some bounce in price being met by selling by investors who bought the original cryptocurrency near the all-time high reached in early October, analysts said.
… “We continued to trade this very thin range between 85k-94k in BTC, with a continued lack of interest and low volumes broadly across the crypto markets,” said Bohan Jiang, senior derivatives trader at FalconX.
Bitcoin continued to fall with other risk assets in recent weeks but did not recover when they did, breaking its usual upside correlation. The slide underscores what analysts see as a market weighed down by weak liquidity and declining risk appetite even after the Federal Reserve’s rate cut last week.
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Ford will take a $19.5B charge in a pivot away from EVs
