Stock futures were mixed on Friday after posting declines for two consecutive days ahead of key September jobs data that investors hope will provide more clues on whether the Federal Reserve will continue its aggressive inflation-fighting rate-hike campaign.
At 7:30 a.m. ET, Dow futures traded 39 points higher, or 0.3%. S&P 500 futures were little changed, and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 38.25 points.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury was up 2 basis points to 3.8448%, while the yield on the policy sensitive 2-year Treasury was at 4.2702%, up by 2 basis points. Bond yields and prices move inversely.
Stocks finished lower Thursday as Wall Street went from a two-day rally to a two-day slump. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished down 347 points, or 1.15%, to 29,926, while the S&P 500 lost 1.03% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq slipped 0.68%.
Stocks had ticked briefly higher late Wednesday before ending the session in the red and halting a two-day winning streak that marked the start of the quarter.
More signs of whether higher interest rates are impacting both the broader economy and companies’ hiring plans will come at 8:30 a.m. ET, when the Labor Department releases September’s non-farm payrolls data.
Economists are expecting the U.S. economy to have created 275,000 jobs last month, with the unemployment rate holding steady at 3.7%.
Recent jobs data have indicated that the labor market remains robust despite a series of jumbo-sized rate hikes. Friday’s payrolls report will be the last before the Fed makes its next decision on interest rates, scheduled for Nov. 2.
Chip stocks were under pressure Friday after Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) warned its third-quarter revenue would be lower than anticipated. Nvidia (NVDA) was down nearly 3% while Intel (INTC) was down 2.58%.
Floating higher, however, were shares of pot companies, with Canopy Growth (CGC) and Tilray Brands (TLRY) both solidly higher after President Biden announced that he will pardon thousands of people convicted of marijuana possession.
Credit Suisse (CSGKF) stock, meantime, was up more than 6% after the Swiss bank said it plans to buy back up to $3 billion in debt.
Credit Suisse stock and bond prices fell in recent weeks amid expectations the bank would raise new shares to fund its restructuring. An online frenzy also sparked concerns about the bank's financial health.
Among other stocks, shares of DraftKings (DKNG) were up more than 6% in premarket on news that the online betting company may be looking to cut a deal with Disney's (DIS) ESPN network.
On the flip side, Levi Strauss (LEVI) shares were down more than 5% meantime after the jeans-maker lowered its full year forecast, citing the strong dollar and supply chain disruptions.
Also lower were shares of CVS Health (CVS), which were down more than 4% after the company said its largest health insurance plan for Medicare recipients received a lower performance rating from the Federal government program.
