US pre-open: Futures point to small gains ahead of key jobs data
Futures had Wall Street stocks opening slightly higher on Friday as investors awaited the key monthly jobs report later in the session.
As of 1220 BST, Dow futures were ahead 0.34%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures had the indices opening 0.22% and 0.36% firmer, respectively.
The Dow Jones closed 372.68 points higher on Thursday after China's Commerce Ministry revealed that Beijing's top trade negotiator, Liu He, had spoken with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
In the background, the editor of China's state-owned Global Times, Hu Xijin, said there was a greater probability now of a "breakthrough" in negotiations, because "the US, worn out by the trade war, may no longer hope for crushing China's will".
In any case, activity was quite subdued ahead of the bell on Friday as market participants were holding out for August's non-farm payrolls and unemployment data, which were set to be released at 1330 BST, as they will look for any hints about the state of the economy.
The unemployment rate was forecast to stay at 3.7%, while the US NFP was expected to hit 160,000.
Ahead of the jobs report, strategists at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch predicted that an upside surprise in non-farm payrolls of above 200,000 would elicit a sell-off in government bonds and a move higher in cyclical stocks.
As an aside, they added: "Trade war buffs should note unemployment rate in most important 10 battleground counties in USA low (3.5%, down from 4.4% in Nov'16 - Chart 4), and initial claims near 30-year lows in 11 battleground states."
Of equal importance, Federal Reserve bank chairman Jerome Powell will be speaking later in the session.
TF Global Markets analyst Naeem Aslam said: "We have two important economic events taking place later today. Both of them have huge potential to move the markets in either direction.
"Investors certainly do not want to be caught on the wrong side, hence a large number of them are sitting on the side, and the ones who are participating, they have adopted a cautious approach."
In corporate news, Sears and ProPhotonix will both publish their latest figures throughout the course of the day.