Investors geared up for the April jobs report due Friday morning, with stock futures showing a positive trend.
Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw a gain of 225 points, equivalent to 0.6%. S&P 500 futures edged up nearly 0.3%, while Nasdaq 100 futures showed an increase of about 0.6%.
In after-hours trading, Apple saw a notable uptick of more than 6% following its announcement of a $110 billion share repurchase and better-than-expected earnings. Meanwhile, biotech company Amgen surged 14% on strong earnings and revenue figures, while Cloudflare experienced a 14% decline due to weak revenue guidance for the full year.
Thursday saw a positive close for the three major U.S. stock indexes, with the S&P 500 rising by 0.91%, the Dow gaining 0.85%, and the Nasdaq Composite outperforming with a 1.51% increase.
Despite the bounce on Thursday, the major indexes are still set to end the week in negative territory. The S&P 500 is down 0.7% for the week, while the Nasdaq has dipped nearly 0.6%, and the Dow is slightly down by 0.04%.
Following the Federal Reserve’s meeting on Wednesday, Chair Jerome Powell hinted that rate cuts are unlikely in the short term due to elevated inflation. However, the potential for rate hikes remains uncertain, with continued strength in the labor market reducing the urgency for cuts.
All eyes will be on the April nonfarm payrolls report on Friday, with economists expecting the addition of 240,000 jobs, a slight slowdown from March’s gains. Additionally, analysts anticipate a 4% year-over-year growth in average hourly wages, while the unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 3.8%.
