Loading ...12-3–A report from the ADP Research Institute showed U.S. companies added fewer workers than estimated in November. Firms added 208,000 jobs last month, below economists’ forecasts of 222,000.
The Labor Department releases its labor data on Friday. The government’s report may show companies added 230,000 nonfarm payrolls in November while the unemployment rate held at 5.8 percent, according to the consensus forecast by economists.
The Fed will release its Beige Book at 2 p.m. local time. The survey, based on reports from its 12 regional banks, will provide anecdotal information about the economy before the Fed’s Dec. 16-17 policy meeting.
Investors are also awaiting signals from the European Central Bank. Mario Draghi and his central bank colleagues may move a step closer to full-scale quantitative easing when they meet tomorrow in Frankfurt. The majority of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News predict the ECB will eventually buy government bonds to help spur growth in the region.