U.S. Stock Futures Slightly Higher

By Saumya Vaishampayan 

        U.S. stocks were poised to open slightly higher Thursday as investors continued to wait for the government's employment report at the end of the week.
        The focus on the July jobs report, which will be released Friday morning, has intensified as investors seek guidance on the path of interest rates in the U.S. The health of the labor market is a key factor in the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision. And since the central bank has held interest rates near zero since the financial crisis, fueling a rally in stocks, some investors are worried about how the market will adjust to slightly higher rates.
        S&P 500 futures added three points, or 0.1%, to 2097. in futures aren't necessarily reflected in market moves after the opening bell.
        In particular, concerns about elevated stock valuations and the pace of earnings growth could weigh on the stock market once the Fed begins to move on rates, said David O'Malley, chief executive of Penn Mutual Asset Management, which oversees $20 billion. "These are issues that have been out there but haven't made it to the top of the heap," he said. "I'm not expecting a huge pullback, but you can take 5% to 7% off the market here."
        Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, rose by 3,000 to 270,000 in the week ended Aug. 1, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists had forecast 271,000 new claims.
        Across the Atlantic, the Bank of England signaled it remains on course to start slowly lifting rates in the U.K. early next year. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.1%, while the Stoxx Europe 600 lost 0.4%.
        Asian stocks were mixed. Chinese shares fell while Japanese stocks rose.
        In commodity markets, gold futures lost 0.1% to $1084.30 an ounce. Crude-oil futures fell 1.1% to $44.64 a barrel.
        The yield on the 10-year Treasury note slipped to 2.269% from 2.270% . Yields fall as prices rise.
        Among individual stocks, Mondelez International Inc. shares jumped 5.9% premarket after activist investor William Ackman revealed a $5.5 billion stake in the company. The activist believes Mondelez has to grow revenues faster and cut costs significantly, or sell itself to a rival, The Wall Street Journal reported.
        Write to Saumya Vaishampayan at saumya.vaishampayan@wsj.com
        (END) Dow Jones Newswires

        August 06, 2015 08:36 ET (12:36 GMT)

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