US: Stocks advance in countdown to key payrolls data

[NEW YORK] Stocks rose ahead of key jobs data that will shape bets on the path of interest rates and the Federal Reserve's massive bond-buying programme. Treasuries were little changed.

The S&P 500 traded near a record as a report showed that applications for US state unemployment benefits fell last week to a fresh pandemic low. The figures come just before the monthly payrolls data due on Friday - forecast to show 725,000 jobs were added in August.

Treasury yields have barely budged since Fed chair Jerome Powell last week said the central bank could begin reducing its asset purchases this year. But that calm faces a test with the jobs data. The potential for volatility comes from the fact that when officials gather this month, they will release fresh projections for the fed funds rate. And with the labour market pivotal for policy now, Friday's reading is seen as laying the foundation for these forecasts.

Cryptocurrency-exposed stocks climbed, with Bitcoin trading around the closely-watched US$50,000 level.

Netflix rallied after Citigroup raised its price target for the video-streaming company.

Moderna rose after filing initial data with the Food and Drug Administration for clearance of a third-dose of its Covid-19 vaccine.

Electric-car maker Tesla temporarily halted some operations at its factory in Shanghai last month, according to people familiar with the matter, amid the global shortage of semiconductors.

The S&P 500 rose 0.3 per cent as at 10.19 am New York time. The Nasdaq 100 was little changed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2 per cent. The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.2 per cent. The MSCI World index rose 0.2 per cent.

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