(News Bulletin 247) – Wall Street is expected to open with no clear direction on Thursday morning as investors remain jittery about ongoing tensions affecting the bond compartment.

Half an hour before the opening, the ‘future’ contract on the Dow Jones index progressed by 0.2%, but that on the Nasdaq dropped nearly 1%, suggesting an opening in scattered order.

On the interest rate market, the yield on 10-year Treasuries is now moving well above 4%, a threshold which had not been reached for more than four months and which is considered by some to be critical.

The rise in long rates is indeed likely to penalize equities by increasing the appeal of Treasury bills and leading to arbitrages in favor of bonds, which have become more attractive than equities.

Pressure on yields is also reviving fears of an increase in the cost of corporate debt, which in turn will penalize economic activity.

On the foreign exchange market, the dollar also rose again against the euro to approach the bar of 1.06.

The rise in US bond yields and the greenback amplified following the publication this morning of the weekly jobless claims figures.

This statistic fell only 2,000 during the week of February 20, to settle at 190,000 against 192,000 the previous week, according to the Labor Department.

The undeniable strength of the job market is leading investors to anticipate further rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, which is seeking to control inflation by curbing economic activity.

Another indicator published before the opening, non-agricultural productivity increased by only 1.7% in the United States in the fourth quarter, according to a second estimate from the Department of Labor which had announced a rate of 3% in first reading. a month ago.

Given a 4.9% increase in hourly wages, unit labor costs increased by 3.2% in the last quarter of 2022, instead of 1.1% at first reading, which again reinforces fears around inflation.

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