Wall St Week Ahead: US jobs data in focus

Markets remain in a historically treacherous patch on the calendar. — Reuters

NEW YORK: A US labour market report late next week will give a crucial read into the economy's health and test investors' confidence that interest rate cuts are coming soon, a view that has helped lift US equities to record-high levels.

Last month's release of surprisingly weak US payrolls data raised expectations that the Federal Reserve will start cutting rates again at its next meeting in September, as the central bank moves to support the labor market despite inflation worries.