The Employment Report - Performance In Stocks And Bonds

Why Friday job report is important

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One of the most important macro numbers on this planet is the monthly US job report. The report sets the bond traders on fire and subsequently the stock market because the interest rates are the main determinant of the valuation of stocks. Thus, any equity trader should at least be aware when this number is published: the first Friday of the month at 0830 ET - one hour before the opening of NYSE.

This article explains what the monthly job report is, why it's important, and finally, we do some backtests on how stocks and bonds perform after the job report - both on the same day and the following week. Our backtests indicate the day of the jobs report shows abnormal positive returns but the effect seems to disappear after the first day.

Please click here to read about the Friday jobs report trading strategy.