Financial markets are positioned for a concentrated burst of U.S. economic information on Friday, April 3, 2026, with the monthly jobs report occupying the center of attention. Alongside that release, several labor-market metrics and the Services PMI reading will arrive within a narrow window, delivering a near-simultaneous read on hiring, wages and service-sector sentiment.
These scheduled releases will provide market participants with updated datapoints on the condition of the U.S. labor market and the private service economy, informing assessments of consumer spending capacity and broader economic momentum as the nation moves into the second quarter.
Major Economic Events to Watch
- 7:30 AM ET: Nonfarm Payrolls (Forecast: 65K, Previous: -92K) - Measures the change in the number of people employed during the previous month, excluding the farming industry, serving as the foremost indicator of consumer spending.
- 7:30 AM ET: Unemployment Rate (Forecast: 4.4%, Previous: 4.4%) - Measures the percentage of the total work force that is unemployed and actively seeking employment during the previous month.
- 7:30 AM ET: Average Hourly Earnings (Forecast: 0.3%, Previous: 0.4%) - Measures the change in the price businesses pay for labor, not including the agricultural sector.
- 8:45 AM ET: Services PMI (Forecast: 51.1, Previous: 51.7) - Based on surveys of over 400 executives in private sector service companies covering transport, communication, financial intermediaries, business services, computing, IT, hotels and restaurants.
Other Important Economic Events to Watch
- 7:30 AM ET: Private Nonfarm Payrolls (Forecast: 73K, Previous: -86K) - Measures the change in the number of total paid U.S. workers of any business, excluding general government employees, private household employees, employees of nonprofit organizations and farm employees.
- 7:30 AM ET: Average Hourly Earnings (YoY) (Forecast: 3.8%, Previous: 3.8%) - Year-over-year measure of wage growth in the U.S. economy.
- 7:30 AM ET: Participation Rate (Previous: 62.0%) - Measures the share of the working-age population either working or looking for work, serving as an important indicator of the supply of labor.
- 8:45 AM ET: S&P Global Composite PMI (Forecast: 51.4, Previous: 51.9) - Monthly economic indicator that measures the performance of the private sector by combining data from both manufacturing and service industries.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Gold Speculative Positions (Previous: 168.3K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in gold futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Crude Oil Speculative Positions (Previous: 233.6K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in crude oil futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Nasdaq 100 Speculative Positions (Previous: 6.6K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in Nasdaq 100 futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC S&P 500 Speculative Positions (Previous: -80.9K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in S&P 500 futures markets, released each Friday to reflect commitments of traders on the prior Tuesday.
Other Economic Events to Watch
- 7:30 AM ET: Government Payrolls (Previous: -6.0K) - Measures the change in employment within the government sector.
- 7:30 AM ET: Average Weekly Hours (Forecast: 34.3, Previous: 34.3) - Measures the average number of hours worked by employees on non-farm payrolls.
- 7:30 AM ET: Manufacturing Payrolls (Forecast: -5K, Previous: -12K) - Measures employment changes in the manufacturing sector.
- 7:30 AM ET: U6 Unemployment Rate (Previous: 7.9%) - Broader measure of unemployment that includes persons marginally attached to the labor force and those employed part-time for economic reasons.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Silver Speculative Positions (Previous: 24.7K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in silver futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Copper Speculative Positions (Previous: 37.5K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in copper futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Natural Gas Speculative Positions (Previous: -172.6K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in natural gas futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Wheat Speculative Positions (Previous: -17.1K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in wheat futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Soybeans Speculative Positions (Previous: 215.2K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in soybeans futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Corn Speculative Positions (Previous: 375.4K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in corn futures markets.
- 2:30 PM ET: CFTC Aluminium Speculative Net Positions (Previous: -0.7K) - Weekly breakdown of net positions for speculative traders in aluminium futures markets.
Market participants will monitor the 7:30 AM ET cluster closely, where headline nonfarm payrolls, unemployment rate, a variety of payroll breakdowns and wage measures are released together. The simultaneous arrival of multiple labor-market indicators means investors and analysts will receive a concentrated signal about hiring trends, hours worked and nominal wage growth in the U.S. economy.
The Services PMI, due at 8:45 AM ET, aggregates responses from over 400 private-sector service executives across segments including transport, communication, financial intermediaries, business services, computing, IT, hotels and restaurants. That reading, together with the S&P Global Composite PMI at the same time, will offer a contemporaneous snapshot of private-sector activity spanning services and manufacturing.
Throughout the afternoon, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's weekly reports on speculative positions in a range of futures markets will provide a regular update on positioning among speculative traders in precious metals, energy, base metals, agricultural commodities and major equity futures. These releases arrive at 2:30 PM ET and include prior-period net positions for gold, crude oil, the Nasdaq 100, the S&P 500, silver, copper, natural gas, wheat, soybeans, corn and aluminium.
Because these data points converge in a single trading day, market reactions could be influenced not only by the headline numbers but by how the suite of indicators fits together - for example, whether payrolls, participation and wage measures present a consistent labor-market story and whether PMIs corroborate a services-sector trend.
For market practitioners focused on sectors sensitive to labor costs and consumer demand, the payrolls and earnings figures will be particularly relevant. Separately, commodity traders and investors commonly follow the CFTC positioning reports for week-to-week shifts in speculative demand across metals, energy and agricultural contracts.
Key Points
- The nonfarm payrolls report, unemployment rate and several wage and payroll breakdowns are concentrated at 7:30 AM ET and will provide a simultaneous view of hiring, hours and wage dynamics.
- The Services PMI and S&P Global Composite PMI will offer contemporaneous readings on private-sector activity, with the Services PMI based on surveys of more than 400 executives across multiple service sub-sectors.
- Afternoon CFTC positioning reports at 2:30 PM ET update speculative net positions across a broad set of commodity and equity futures, informing short-term positioning insights for market participants.
Risks and Uncertainties
- Simultaneous releases of multiple labor-market indicators could produce mixed signals if payrolls, participation, and wages move in different directions; this introduces uncertainty for sectors sensitive to consumer spending and labor costs.
- PMI readings may not align with payrolls or wage data, creating interpretive ambiguity about private-sector momentum, particularly for services-intensive industries.
- Weekly CFTC positioning updates can show large swings in speculative net positions, which may amplify short-term price volatility in commodity and equity futures markets.
This article presents the calendar of scheduled releases and descriptions of each datapoint. The data arriving on Friday will be used by market participants to reassess near-term economic conditions as the U.S. moves into the second quarter.