US pre-open: Dow futures point to losses amid heightened tensions with China
US futures had stocks opening lower on Friday amid a ratcheting up of tensions between Washington and Beijing.
As of 1225 BST, Dow Jones futures were down 0.30%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.27% and 0.38% weaker, respectively.
The Dow closed 101.78 points higher on Thursday as market participants digested another jobless report from the Department of Labor and news that the Senate had passed a bill that would make listings by Chinese firms on US exchanges more difficult led to fears of a ratcheting up in trade tensions between the world's two biggest economies.
Gold prices advanced 0.41% ahead of the bell on Friday amid heightened tensions between the US and China as investors turned towards safe havens.
Despite threats of a second wave of Covid-19 cases after several states began to reopen, Donald Trump said on Thursday evening that America was "not closing our country" if infections increase.
"We can put out the fires. Whether it is an ember or a flame, we are going to put it out. But we are not closing our country," said Trump.
Data from John Hopkins University revealed that of the states that have reopened, more than a third have seen a rise in new coronavirus cases.
No major data points or corporate results were scheduled for release on Friday.