Stocks are seeing modest weakness in early trading on Wednesday, as traders react to a disappointing report on private sector employment. Selling pressure has been relatively subdued, however, limiting the downside for the markets.
The major averages are currently posting modest losses, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq well off its lows for the young session. The Dow is down 46.77 points or 0.4 percent at 12,523.02, the Nasdaq is down 2.68 points or 0.1 percent at 2,832.62 and the S&P 500 is down 4.49 points or 0.3 percent at 1,340.71.
The modest weakness on Wall Street comes on the heels of the release of a report from payroll processor Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (ADP) showing that private sector employment increased by much less than anticipated in the month of May.
ADP said private sector employment increased by 38,000 jobs in May following a downwardly revised increase of 177,000 jobs in April. Economist had expected an increase of about 170,000 jobs compared to the addition of 179,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The report has added to recent concerns about the strength of the labor market, with traders looking ahead to Friday's monthly employment report from the Labor Department, which includes government jobs.
Banking stocks have shown a notable move to the downside on the heels of the data, dragging the KBW Bank Index down by 1.6 percent. Huntington Bancshares (HBAN), Wells Fargo (WFC), and BB&T (BBT) are turning in some of the sector's worst performances.
While a majority of the other major sectors have also moved lower, most are showing only modest downward moves. Moderate weakness is visible among brokerage, wireless, and housing stocks.
Meanwhile, shares of Phillips-Van Heusen (PVH) are seeing early strength after the apparel maker reported better than expected first quarter results and raised its full-year guidance. Phillips-Van Heusen is currently up by 1.3 percent.
Sealed Air (SEE) is also trading higher after the packaging company agreed to acquire privately-held Diversey Holdings for about $2.9 billion in cash and stock. The transaction is expected to be accretive to earnings in the first full year following completion.
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May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.