The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to regain ground following the sell-off seen in the previous session.
The futures advanced following the release of a closely watched Labor Department report showing employment in the U.S. increased by slightly less than expected in the month of February.
The report said non-farm payroll employment climbed by 151,000 jobs in February after rising by a downwardly revised 125,000 jobs in January.
Economists had expected employment to grow by 160,000 jobs compared to the addition of 143,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said the unemployment crept up to 4.1 percent in February from 4.1 percent in January, while economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged.
While the report could add to recent concerns about the strength for the economy, the data may also generate optimism about the outlook for interest rates.
Later in the day, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is due to deliver remarks on the economic outlook that could further impact the outlook for rates.
After recovering from early weakness to end Thursday’s session sharply higher, stocks showed a substantial move back to the downside during trading on Thursday. With the steep drops on the day, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 tumbled to five and four-month closing lows, respectively.
The major averages moved roughly sideways going into the close, lingering near their worst levels of the day. The Nasdaq plummeted 483.48 points or 2.6 percent to 18,069.26, the S&P 500 plunged 104.11 points or 1.8 percent at 5,738.52 and the Dow slumped 427.51 points or 1.0 percent to 42,579.08.
The sell-off on Wall Street came as ongoing concerns about the economic impact of President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China led traders to cash in on Wednesday’s strong gains.
While Trump’s decision to grant a one-month tariff exemption for automakers contributed to a turnaround on Wednesday, uncertainty about further exemptions weighed on Wall Street.
Stocks saw continued weakness even after Trump granted temporary tariff exemptions for Canadian and Mexican goods that are compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement until April 2nd.
In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department released a report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by more than expected in the week ended March 1st.
The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 221,000, a decrease of 21,000 from the previous week’s unrevised level of 242,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 235,000.
On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched report on employment in the month of February.
The Commerce Department also released a report showing the U.S. trade deficit widened by more than expected in the month of January.
The report said the trade deficit surged to a record high $131.4 billion in January from a revised $98.1 billion in December. Economists had expected the trade deficit to jump to $123.0 billion from the $98.4 billion originally reported for the previous month.
The notably wider trade deficit came as the value of imports soared by 10.0 percent to $401.2 billion, while the value of imports increased by 1.2 percent to $269.8 billion.
Semiconductor stocks turned in some of the market’s worst performances on the day, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index plunging by 4.5 percent to its lowest closing level in seven months.
Substantial weakness was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 3.6 percent nosedive by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.
Computer hardware stocks also showed a significant move to the downside, dragging the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index down to its lowest closing level in a month.
Networking, retail, commercial real estate and software stocks also saw considerable weakness, while telecom, oil and housing stocks bucked the downtrend.
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