(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures gained on Friday, lifted by upbeat corporate updates from Apple and Amgen, while traders braced for a key jobs report for a clearer outlook on the labor market and the interest rate path.
Apple jumped 5.8%, outpacing other megacap stocks in premarket trading after the iPhone maker unveiled a record $110 billion share buyback program and beat modest expectations for quarterly results and forecast.
Amgen climbed 13.5% as the biotechnology firm said it was very encouraged after completing an interim analysis of its mid-stage study of experimental weight-loss drug MariTide and as it reported first-quarter earnings.
Sentiment also remained upbeat as investors weighed the U.S. Federal Reserve’s more dovish-than-expected interest rate guidance in its latest policy meeting, causing U.S. stocks to rally on Thursday.
However, losses on the back of stronger economic data such as labor costs and some dour earnings from chipmakers in the week have set all the three main stock indexes up for weekly losses.
Focus will now shift to the key nonfarm payrolls report for April due at 8:30 a.m. ET, for a clearer picture of labor demand in the U.S. economy and its impact on the monetary policy trajectory.
The Labor Department’s report is expected to show U.S. job growth probably slowed to a still-solid clip in April, with wages maintaining their steady rise.
“Fed Chair Jerome Powell probably achieved what he set out to do, which is to beat the hawkish and dovish drums simultaneously,” Raffi Boyadjian, lead investment analyst at forex broker XM, said.
“The April jobs report will be crucial in underscoring the Fed’s dovish narrative … whether the labor market can continue to churn out new jobs at a staggering pace without fuelling a wage-price spiral is highly questionable.”
Money markets see a 61.9% chance of the first interest rate cut being delivered in September, while pricing in a greater 73.8% chance for November, according to CME FedWatch tool.
At 05:25 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 266 points, or 0.69%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 14.25 points, or 0.28%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 98.25 points, or 0.56%.
Block rose 7.1% after the Jack Dorsey-led payments fintech firm lifted its full-year adjusted core earnings forecast and revealed plans to add more bitcoins to its balance sheet.
Expedia fell 10.3% after the online travel agency cut its full-year revenue growth forecast as gross bookings were hit by a drag in its vacation rental platform.
(Reporting by Shristi Achar A in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
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