Job Reports Land on a Closed Market

The US job reports are one of the most significant economic indicators behind GDP. They often drive the market, majorly affecting all US indexes once they release. However, Good Friday this year lands on April 2nd, matching the date of the job data release. That means US stock markets won’t be operating, rendering investors unable to react immediately. Additionally, some other global markets will be closed as well.

Since 1980, Good Friday and job reports have matched up a total of 12 times. The last time such an event occurred was in 2015 when both landed on April 3rd. As the holiday isn’t a federal one, it doesn’t stop the job data from being released.

While the job report data was always a vital economic indicator, this one is especially vital. The ongoing pandemic decimated many economic systems, and many are hopeful the data will indicate a bounceback. The vaccine rollout and $1.9 trillion financial aid have hopefully had enough of a positive impact to stabilize markets. The newest report will tell us if and when a full recovery is possible and what the future holds for the labor market.

Art Hogan, the National Securities chief market strategist, commented on the fact that markets will be closed when the data releases. He noted that the coincidence might not necessarily be a negative occurrence. Namely, Hogan stated that the closure might minimize the impact of trader panic. As they’ll have the weekend to determine their next move, there might not be a huge spike in markets.

Last year’s March data was quite negative, with unemployment humping to a 26-year record of 8.5%. Prior to that, it sat at 8.1%. US nonfarm payrolls also showed a drop of 663,000. This year, we expect to see a jump to 655,000 as unemployment drops to 6.2%.