Wall Street Targets To Open Positive

The monthly jobs report is likely to be in the spotlight on Friday. The political tension between China and Taiwan is closely watched by traders.

Asian shares finished mixed, while European shares are trading lower.

Early cues from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might open positive.
As of 7.35 am ET, the Dow futures were up 28.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were gaining 4.25 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were adding 20.50 points.

The U.S. major averages finished firmly positive on Thursday. The Dow jumped 337.95 points or 1 percent to 34,754.94, the Nasdaq surged up 152.10 points or 1.1 percent to 14,654.02 and the S&P 500 advanced 36.21 points or 0.8 percent to 4,399.76.

On the economic front, the Labor Department’s Employment Situation for September will be published at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for an increase of 475K, while it was up 235K in the previous month. The Unemployment rate is expected to increase by 5.1 percent, while it was up 5.2 percent in August.

The Commerce Department’s Wholesale Inventories (Preliminary) for August will be issued at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is for an increase of 0.6 percent, while it was up 0.6 percent in the prior month.

The Baker Hughes North American rig count for the week will be released at 1.00 pm ET. In the prior week, the North America rig count was up 693 and the U.S. rig count was up 528.

Asian stocks ended Friday’s session on a mixed note. Chinese shares advanced as traders returned from a one-week holiday. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index rose 24 points, or 0.67 percent, to 3,592.17 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index inched up 136.12 points, or 0.55 percent, to 24,837.85.

Japanese shares rose for a second day. The Nikkei average ended up 370.73 points, or 1.34 percent, at 28,048.94. The Nikkei fell 2.5 percent on concerns about slowing growth and inflation. The broader Topix index edged up 22.13 points, or 1.15 percent, to 1,961.85.

Australian markets rose notably as higher commodity prices. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 63.40 points, or 0.87 percent, to 7,320.10 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 66.10 points, or 0.88 percent, at 7,617.30.

European shares are trading higher. Among the major indexes in the region, the CAC 40 Index of France is adding 68.64 points or 1.04 percent. The German DAX is progressing 78.03 points or 0.50 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is up 31.09 points or 0.45 percent.

The Swiss Market Index is gaining 68.15 points or 0.57 percent.

The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is down 0.19 percent.

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