“Inflation has been the bigger event for traders the past two years and still is... Despite a recent payrolls miss, any prints that show more than 150,000 jobs were created in a given month, investors will largely be comfortable with that because it still reflects a strong labor market. If job growth were to come in below that, the market will start to shift its focus toward hiring growth over inflation.”

 “The rise in interest rates that has pushed up SPX forwards increases call premiums relative to puts... This has eased the entry for collar strategies that sell calls and buy puts. The decline in the SPX skew, which is close to the low of the last 10-year range, has also reduced the cost of this strategy.”

 “It’s not going to be Fed rate cuts that drive the market going forward, rather it’s going to be earnings. Corporate earnings are much stronger than people have anticipated even in this elevated interest-rate environment.”

 “Although we understand the relief with which this report will be received, there is nothing very encouraging contained within it — and the best that can be said is that there was ‘no new bad news’ either.”

 “While the latest PPI reading was constructive, investors should be prepared for fewer rate cuts this year — one or two — and for a first potential move not until the July meeting.”