• US equities cheered upbeat market sentiment and a positive surprise from second-tier jobs data.
• ViacomCBS benefits from company news, Wynn Resorts gains on trimming quarterly loss.
• Treasury yields jump the most in 12 days, commodities seesaw.
• All eyes will be on the US jobs report for July.

Wall Street benchmark post a better daily performance by the end of Thursday’s North American session amid stimulus hopes, economic optimism and upbeat US data. However, the pre-NFP caution joins the tapering tantrums to challenge the bulls.

Read: Forex Today: Dollar firmer ahead of NFP report

Even so, Nasdaq and S&P 500 renew all-time high with 4,429.76 and 14,896.50 respectively, before closing with 0.60% and 0.78% daily gains around 4,429.10 and 14,895.10 in that order. It’s worth noting that Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 271.58 points or 0.78% to 35,064.25.

A mild optimism among the policymakers, despite Delta covid variant, joins surprise positive Jobless Claims figures to back the bulls. Also on the positive side could be the news that the US Senators are closer to infrastructures spending bill passage and may start negotiating the budget details as the debt limit pause expired.

On the contrary, chatters over tapering and rate hikes by the Fed and BOE policymakers do challenge the equity buyers. On the same line is China’s clampdown on stocks and the covid figures from Australia, the US and China, which recently refresh multi-day top.

Talking about company-specific news, ViacomCBS Inc. announced to have registered the highest number of new streaming subscribers during Q2 2021, also struck a multi-year deal with Comcast Corporation’s Sky for the Paramount+ streaming service launch in Europe. Further, Robinhood Markets Inc. dropped for the first time in five days amid consolidation moves whereas Goldman Sachs raised its S&P 500 target for 2021 to 4,700 from 4,300.

The earnings calendar also flashed positive signs from Wynn Resorts, MercadoLibre and Marathon Oil but Cardinal Health missed the mark.

Given the scheduling of US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) for July, nothing matters more than the employment data for traders going forward. Although market consensus favors a firmer print, ADP figures keep investors on the edge. Hence, actual readings and traders’ reactions should be closely observed for the near-term direction.

Read: Nonfarm Payrolls Preview: Why the dollar could surge in (almost) any scenario