Cramer: Markets to Expect September Rate Hike if Friday's Jobs Numbers Are Strong

Wall Street is bracing for Friday's July labor report. Analysts expect the economy to create roughly 212,000 jobs. 'We're likely going to see decent job growth in line with the six month average,' said Emanuella Enenajor, senior North America economist at Bank of America (BAC) Merrill Lynch, who expects nonfarm payrolls to rise 215,000. But there's a worrisome sign that may not happen. The ADP report, which tracks payrolls in the private sector, showed the economy only created 185,000 jobs in July...short of the 215,000 analysts expected. Historically, the ADP number tends to foreshadow Friday's report. Analysts say job creation below 200,000 in July could throw a wrench into the Federal Reserve's plans to hike short-term interest rates at their September meeting. 'If it's softer than expected, the Fed would raise rates in November or more likely in December,' said Angus Campbell, senior analyst at London-based FxPro. On the flip side, better than expected numbers would put a September rate hike in the spotlight. 'That's what this market acts like. It acts as if we're about to have a rate hike,' said TheStreet's Jim Cramer, portfolio manager of Action Alerts PLUS.