SEVN - The Labor Downshift

2024-05-05 09:00:00 ET

Summary

• U.S. equity markets advanced for a second week while benchmark interest rates retreated from five-month highs after a critical slate of employment data showed a long-awaited cooldown in hiring trends.
• Foreshadowed by "dovish" remarks from Fed Chair Powell at the FOMC's policy meeting, payrolls data showed that job growth slowed to six-month lows while wage growth cooled to three-year lows.
• Following its best week since November, the S&P 500 advanced 0.6%, while bonds caught a bid this week across the yield and maturity curve.
• Buoyed by the rate retreat and by a relatively solid slate of REIT earnings reports, real estate equities were among the leaders for a second-straight week. The Equity REIT and Mortgage REIT Index each gained 1%.

Real Estate Weekly Outlook

U.S. equity markets advanced for a second week, while benchmark interest rates retreated from five-month highs after a critical slate of employment data showed perhaps the most definitive signs yet of a long-awaited cooldown in labor market trends. Foreshadowed by surprisingly "dovish" remarks from Fed Chair Powell at the conclusion of the FOMC's policy meeting, payrolls data showed that the U.S. economy added just 175k jobs in April - the smallest gain in six months - while wage growth cooled to three-year lows, which together revived the prospects for multiple interest rate cuts this year....

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