Stock futures gain as Italy turmoil ends; jobs data awaited
(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Friday as Italy’s political crisis subsided although prospects of a full-blown trade war between the United States and its top allies continued to loom over the markets.
Canada and Mexico hit back on Thursday with duties on U.S. goods ranging from orange juice to pork and the European Union was looking to tax bourbon whiskey and Harley motorcycles after Washington imposed steel and aluminum tariffs on the countries.
Tariff worries sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average down as much as 1 percent.
However, U.S. futures recovered as Italy’s anti-establishment parties revived coalition plans, removing the risk of a repeat vote dominated by debate over the country’s future in the euro zone.
At 7:19 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMc1 were up 126 points, or 0.52 percent. S&P 500 e-minis ESc1 were up 12.25 points, or 0.45 percent and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQc1 were up 24.75 points, or 0.35 percent.
All eyes will be on the U.S. monthly jobs data, which is due at 8.30 a.m. ET. Job growth likely accelerated in May as warmer weather boosted hiring at construction sites, but wage gains are expected to have remained marginal.
U.S. nonfarm payrolls is expected to rise by 188,000 jobs in May, compared with 164,000 job additions in April, while average hourly earnings is likely to have risen 0.2 percent after edging up 0.1 percent in April.
Economists widely expect the Federal Reserve to raise the borrowing costs in its June 13 meeting and again in September. However, prospects of a fourth rate hike in December have considerably reduced.
Among stocks, warehouse club operator Costco (COST.O) dipped 1.9 percent in premarket trading after higher freight costs dented its quarterly gross margins.
Lululemon (LULU.O) jumped 6.3 percent after the Canadian athleisure apparel maker’s quarterly profit beat analysts’ estimates and it forecast higher revenue in current quarter.
Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur