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Investing.com — U.S. stock futures traded in a mixed fashion Friday, as investors digested earnings from tech giant Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) ahead of the release of the key monthly jobs report.
By 06:55 ET (10:55 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 5 points, or 0.2%, while S&P 500 Futures traded 6 points, or 0.2%, lower and Nasdaq 100 Futures dropped 50 points, or 0.4%.
Wall Street on course for hefty weekly gains
The main indices on Wall Street posted strong gains on Thursday, and are on course for sizable weekly gains, fueled by renewed hopes that an era of unprecedented monetary tightening may be coming to an end in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged for a second straight meeting.
The blue chip Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 4.4% so far this week, on pace for its next week since October 2022. The broad-based S&P 500 is up 4.9% this week and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite 5.2%, both seeking their best weeks since November of last year.
Jobs report looms large
This positive tone has one further test this week – the widely-watched monthly jobs report, which is going to be one of the data sets the Fed looks at when deciding its next step.
The U.S. economy is expected to have added 180,000 jobs last month, down from 336,000 in September. The unemployment rate is seen at 3.8%, matching the prior month’s figure, while average hourly earnings are expected to have increased by 0.3% in October, following a 0.2% gain in September.
Traders will likely be on the lookout for any signs of resilience in the labor market, a trend that could give the Fed more headroom to hike interest rates once again.
Chair Jerome Powell left room for another rate increase before the end of the year on Wednesday, but the market now widely expects the Fed will leave rates alone in December.
Apple disappoints with holiday quarter forecast
In the corporate sector, Apple stock has slipped lower premarket after the tech giant predicted quarterly sales that were below market estimates, blaming weak demand for iPads and wearables, especially in key market China.
The California company flagged that revenue in its December quarter — typically one of its largest due to holiday shopping — would be in line with the corresponding time frame last year. However, the quarter will be one week shorter, denting sales by 7%.
Earnings from the likes of Burger King and Tim Horton’s parent Restaurant Brands (NYSE:QSR) and movie theater operator Cinemark (NYSE:CNK) will be in the spotlight.
Oil set for hefty weekly loss
Oil prices edged higher Friday, adding to the previous session’s sharp gains after traders became increasingly confident that the Federal Reserve was done with its run of interest rate hikes, hitting the dollar.
By 06:55 ET, the U.S. crude futures traded 0.3% higher at $82.67 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.1% to $86.94 a barrel.
Both benchmarks gained more than $2 a barrel on Thursday, but were set to lose more than 3% over the week, their second consecutive losing week, as a lack of escalation in the Israel-Hamas war removed worries about disruptions to supply in this oil-rich region.
Meanwhile, recent data out of China has underscored the uncertain demand outlook in the world’s top importer.
Additionally, gold futures rose 0.1% to $1,995.85/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.2% higher at 1.0643.
(Oliver Gray contributed to this item.)
Source: Investing.com
