News of the day for July 5, 2024

The U.S. payroll report is anticipated to point out that employers added 200,000 jobs in June, fewer than last month; bitcoin (BTCUSD) and other cryptocurrencies are falling on selloff fears after failed exchange Mt. Gox began $9 billion in payouts; the European Union (EU) is reportedly set to warn social media platform X on content violations in the most recent move against U.S. tech firms; Disney (DIS), Netflix (NFLX), and other streaming services asked a Canadian court to put aside a content fee; and Shell (SHEL) expects to take an impairment charge of as much as $2 billion after halting work on a biofuels plant. U.S. stock futures are little modified following the Independence Day holiday. Here’s what investors have to know today.

1. Jobs Report Expected to Show Slowdown in Hiring

Following yesterday’s holiday, investors will start the trading day Friday with fresh data on the labor market when the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its monthly jobs report at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists forecast that employers added 200,000 jobs in June, fewer than May’s 272,000 figure, while the unemployment rate is anticipated to remain at 4% and hourly wages are seen rising 0.3%, down from 0.4% the prior month. Within the minutes for the June meeting of the Federal Reserve released Wednesday, some officials said they were more closely monitoring job numbers as inflation ticks lower, as unexpected weakness within the labor market could prompt the Fed to maneuver more quickly on cutting interests.

2. Bitcoin, Ether Fall as Mt. Gox Payouts Begin

Cryptocurrency values are plummeting after failed exchange Mt. Gox began payouts to former customers that might total as much as $9 billion, putting selling pressures on cryptocurrencies from holders trying to take gains. Bitcoin (BTCUSD) is down about 3% at roughly $55,000, while ether is down 3.5%, a part of a selloff totaling $170 billion in market capitalization within the last 24 hours. The Mt. Gox payout could put between 65,000 and 140,000 latest bitcoin available in the market, while customers will even receive payments in Bitcoin Money.

3. EU Reportedly Set to Warn X for Failing to Combat Dangerous Content

The European Union (EU) is preparing to issue a proper warning to Elon Musk’s X social media platform for failing to combat dangerous content, the most recent in a series of actions that it has taken against big tech firms under recently enacted laws, in accordance with a Bloomberg report. A violation of the Digital Services Act (DSA) could end in a nice for X of as much as 6% of its revenue, the report said. The EU has also used its latest Digital Markets Act (DMA) to charge other tech giants, including Apple (AAPL) with unfairly restricting how developers can seek payments, and Facebook parent Meta Platforms (META) with failing to let users opt out of information collection.

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4. Disney, Netflix Amongst Streamers Looking for to Block Canadian Content Fee

The Walt Disney Co. (DIS), Netflix (NFLX), and other streaming firms have asked a Canadian court to halt plans for a 5% fee on sales within the country to assist finance local content. The Motion Picture Association-Canada filing within the country’s Federal Court of Appeals seeks to place an end to the payments proposed by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, which could cost streaming firms as much as 200 million Canadian dollars ($147 million) annually, The Wall Street Journal reported. Other streaming services within the suit include those of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and Paramount Global (PARA).

5. Shell to Take $2B Charge After Pausing Work on Dutch Biofuels Plant

British energy giant Shell (SHEL) said it was set to take an impairment loss of between $1.5 billion and $2 billion after pausing construction of a significant Dutch biofuels plant. Europe’s largest energy firm said Friday that it expects to book the tax after weak market conditions forced it to pause construction of a biofuels facility in Rotterdam and divest its chemicals refinery in Singapore. The corporate also revealed that it expected its Integrated Gas segment to provide lower revenues from its first-quarter results “on account of seasonality.”

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