U.S. stocks were lower on Thursday as investors awaited Friday’s big jobs report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 248.33 points, or 0.55%, to close at 44,765.71. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.18% to end at 19,700.26. The S&P 500 dropped 0.19%, settling at 6,075.11.
The three major averages saw solid gains in the previous session, posting record closes.
“The problem you have is that valuations are stretched across the board,” said Keeley Teton portfolio manager Brian Leonard in an interview with CNBC. “You’re sitting at records, but there’s not a lot of enthusiasm or euphoria. Historically, when the records happened, the valuations were more reasonable.”
Traders on Thursday looked ahead to key U.S. employment data on Friday. Economists polled by Dow Jones forecast the U.S. economy added 214,000 jobs in November.
This labor report could inform the Federal Reserve’s rate decision at its policy meeting later this month. On Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that the U.S. economy is strong enough for the central bank to move carefully on rate cuts.
“The labor market is better, and the downside risks appear to be less in the labor market,” he said. “Growth is definitely stronger than we thought, and inflation is coming [out] a little higher. So, the good news is that we can afford to be a little more cautious as we try to find neutral.”
Bitcoin traded marginally lower, falling below $100,000 after breaking above it for the first time late Wednesday. That overnight move briefly led crypto-related stocks such as MicroStrategy and Coinbase higher. However, these names had also given up those advances, with MicroStrategy dropping 4.8% and Coinbase shedding 3.1%.
