New York, Jan 8, 2026, 05:58 EST — Premarket
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures edged lower on Thursday after the blue-chip index logged its steepest one-day drop since Nov. 18, with traders bracing for Friday’s U.S. jobs report. Defense names climbed after President Donald Trump called for a $1.5 trillion military budget for 2027; by 5:08 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis — futures tied to the index — were down 146 points, or 0.30%, while S&P 500 E-minis fell 0.22% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis dropped 0.31%, and RTX gained 4.9%. Jefferies economist Mohit Kumar said a shift toward more government intervention would “add to some risk premium in the markets.” 1
The main catalyst is the Employment Situation report, the government’s monthly reading on hiring, pay and unemployment, due at 8:30 a.m. ET on Friday. The next big macro test follows fast: the consumer price index for December is scheduled for Jan. 13. 2
This week’s early signals have been soft but uneven. ADP’s private-sector payrolls report showed employers added 41,000 jobs in December, missing economists’ expectations for a 47,000 gain, and economists surveyed by Reuters looked for about 60,000 nonfarm jobs overall in Friday’s report with the unemployment rate seen easing to 4.5%. 3
The Dow closed Wednesday down 0.94% at 48,996.08 after earlier hitting an intraday record, dragged by declines in financials including JPMorgan. “Investors have come into 2026 with a similar playbook to last year: Buy tech and forget about it,” Jake Dollarhide, chief executive of Longbow Asset Management, said. 4
Outside the market tape, labor demand is cooling at the margin. The Labor Department’s JOLTS report — a monthly survey of job openings, hires and quits — showed openings were little changed at 7.1 million in November but down 885,000 from a year earlier. 5
For the Dow, single-stock moves can do a lot of work. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is price-weighted, meaning higher-priced shares carry more influence on the index than lower-priced ones. 6
The risk is that Friday’s jobs number forces a quick rethink. A stronger-than-expected print could push bond yields up and cool rate-cut expectations, while a weaker report could revive fears the economy is losing speed.
