Last week, 244,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits, a figure that was slightly higher than consensus expectations of 241,000. Markets were also moving higher after the U.S. Labor Department announced that weekly jobless claims fell in line with economist expectations.
On Tuesday, the Dow pushed higher despite concerns about a possible interest rate hike and falling oil prices.
Let's look at the numbers from Wednesday for the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq:
Dow Jones: 20,775.60; +32.60; +0.16%
S&P 500: 2,362.82; -2.56; -0.11%
Nasdaq: 5,860.63; -5.32; -0.09%
Here's a look at today's most important market events and stocks, plus a look at Thursday's economic calendar.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average projected a 30-point gain as investors prepare for a busy day of earnings reports and weigh statements from Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin. According to reports, Mnuchin said that the Trump administration is prepared to push through a "very significant" level of tax reform by August of this year.
Just Released: These "Second Salary" Plays Could Make You and Your Grandkids Rich
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve released minutes from its most recent meeting on monetary policy. The central bank projects another interest-rate increase is poised to happen "fairly soon." Despite the optimism for higher interest rates, policymakers did not show any sense of urgency given that inflation still remains below its target rate of 2%. According to CME Group's FedWatch tool, the odds of a rate hike in March are just 22%. However, the markets have set a probability for a May rate hike at 52%.
Crude oil prices were pushing higher in pre-market hours on news that U.S. crude inventory levels fell last week. According to the American Petroleum Institute, U.S. crude stocks fell by 884,000 barrels last week, a figure far below the expected increase of 3.5 million barrels. Traders are eyeing today's official report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The surprising news comes at a time that OPEC is working to surpass its agreement among member nations and Russia to reduce global output by 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd). According to various sources, the global oil cartel has reached a compliance level of 90% and could work to surpass that level in the coming months.
Don't Miss: There Are Big Changes and Big Profits Coming to the Oil Sector in 2017
The WTI crude oil price today added 1.7%. Brent crude gained nearly 1.5%.
But the big news is the the Saudi Aramco IPO.
On Wednesday, we learned that the Saudi Aramco IPO underwriters will be JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), and HSBC Holdings Plc. (NYSE ADR: HSBC). This is poised to be the largest IPO in the history of the markets.
Given the news, investors need to prepare. That's why we've put together this guide on the IPO, its underwriters, and more.
[mmpazkzone name="end-story-hostage" network="9794" site="307044" id="138536" type="4"]
Must See: This Great Depression-era "Secret" Helped Transform Two Teachers into Millionaires: Donna and Dave R. were both teachers in Boston. But today they're retired millionaires who are also earning $10,000 a month in income. Their secret? Much of their wealth is due to a Great Depression-era "program" most have no idea exists. Full Story
Follow Money Morning on Facebook and Twitter.
About the Author
Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, consultant, and political risk analyst with decades of trading experience and degrees in economics, cybersecurity, and business from Johns Hopkins, Purdue, Indiana University, and Northwestern.