Stocks poised to start lower
U.S. stock futures were pointing to a slightly weaker start for Wall Street on Thursday as traders paused for breath after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite hit new records in the previous session, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose above 29000 for the first time since February.
As of 6:00 a.m. ET, futures tied to the Dow indicated a loss of 34 points, or 0.12% to 29,056. The S&P 500 futures traded 13.32 points lower, or 0.37% to 3,365.88 while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures shed 115.25 points, or 0.93% to 12,296.25.
The jobs market will be in focus today as the U.S. Labor Department releases jobless claims report for the week to August 29.
Economists expect the report to show 950,000 claims were filed during the week versus over 1 million filed in the preceding week.
SEC goes after Robinhood
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is in the advanced stages of a civil fraud probe into Robinhood for failing to disclose until late 2018 its sale of clients’ orders to high-frequency trading firms, according to a report on the Wall Street Journal.
Sources familiar with the matter told the Journal that the online stock brokerage could have to pay a fine of more than $10 million if it agrees to settle with the SEC.
A deal with the regulator is not likely to be announced this month, the sources added, and the brokerage has not yet entered into formal discussions over a proposed fine.
“We strive to maintain constructive relationships with our regulators and to cooperate fully with them,” a Robinhood representative said.
China to play a critical role in the sale of TikTok
Chinese officials will play an important role in the sale of TikTok’s U.S. operations to suitors including Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), Gao Feng, spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce, emphasized during a weekly online briefing on Thursday.
“If related enterprises are transferring technology abroad during trade, investment or technical cooperation that fall under the regulations, they are advised to immediately consult provincial-level commerce department offices and handle that in accordance with the law,” he said according to Bloomberg.
President Donald Trump has ordered TikTok-parent ByteDance to sell its U.S. assets. Last week, Beijing changed its rules on exporting technology, a move that could complicate a potential sale of the popular video app.
