NEW YORK (AP) — A surprising jump in hiring is swaying U.S. stock and bond markets.
An early decline in stock index futures was trimmed after payroll processor ADP reported employers added 297,000 jobs last month. The jump in payrolls from the ADP survey came in far above the 100,000 rise economists expected. That could be a good sign for the Labor Department's monthly jobs report due out Friday.
The dollar rose against other major currencies. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six countries' currencies, is up 0.7 percent. Treasurys took a slide, pushing yields higher. The yield on the 10-year note rose to 3.40 percent, up from 3.33 percent late Tuesday.
A report from the Institute for Supply Management on the service sector is scheduled for release at 10 a.m. Eastern (1500 GMT). The ISM's service-sector index is expected to show a slight gain to 55.5 in December. That would be the highest point reached since May 2006, well before the recession began in December 2007. Any reading above 50 signals expansion.
Growth in the service industry could give the economy a needed boost. Retailers, hotels and other service companies employ about 80 percent of the country's work force. But their growth has lagged behindmanufacturers since the recession ended last June.
In pre-market trading, Dow Jones industrial average futures are down 32 points, or 0.3 percent, to 11,587. S&P 500 futures are down 4, or 0.3 percent, to 1,261. Nasdaq 100 futures are down 5, or 0.3 percent, to 2,239.