Futures Pointing To Initial Rebound On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Thursday, with stocks likely to move back to the upside after ending yesterday’s choppy trading session modestly lower.

The futures saw continued strength following the release of a Labor Department report showing first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits dipped by less than expected last week.

The report said initial jobless claims slipped to 227,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 232,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to fall to 220,000 from the 231,000 originally reported for the previous week.

With jobless claims remaining at a somewhat elevated level, the data may partly offset yesterday’s stronger-than-expected monthly jobs data.

While the monthly jobs report pointed to resilience in the labor market, the data also reduced optimism about further interest rate cuts in the near future.

The focus now shifts to the Labor Department’s report on consumer price inflation that is due to be released before the start of trading on Friday.

“Forecasts suggest the critical core CPI measure could ease to around 2.5%, marking a near five-year low,” said Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com. “If inflation comes in line with — or ideally below — expectations, the strength of the labor market may become secondary.”

She added, “A softer inflation print would keep rate cuts firmly priced in and could restore upward momentum in risk assets.”

After failing to sustain an initial move to the upside, stocks quickly gave back ground in early trading on Wednesday and showed a lack of direction over the remainder of the session.

The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing modestly lower.

The Dow slipped 66.74 points or 0.1 percent to 50,1212.40, the Nasdaq dipped 36.01 points or 0.2 percent to 23,066.47 and the S&P 500 edged down 0.34 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 6,941.47.

The initial strength on Wall Street came following the release of a closely watched Labor Department report showing employment in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in the month of January.

The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 130,000 jobs in January after rising by a downwardly revised 48,000 jobs in December.

Economists had expected employment to climb by 70,000 jobs compared to the addition of 50,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

The report also said the unemployment rate edged down to 4.3 percent in January from 4.4 percent in December, while economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged.

However, the report also showed a significant downward revision to job growth in 2025, with the increase in employment revised to 181,000 jobs from 584,000 jobs.

“One big takeaway from today’s nonfarm payroll report is the 2025 average monthly gain in payrolls was 15,000,” said Jeffrey Roach, Chief Economist for LPL Financial. “Labor demand came to a standstill last year.”

The stronger-than-expected job growth in January may also have reduced the likelihood of near-term interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, offsetting the initial positive reaction.

Despite the lackluster performance by the broader markets, energy stocks moved sharply higher along with the price of crude oil, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index and the NYSE Arca Oil Index surging by 3.1 percent and 2.8 percent, respectively.

A notable increase by the price of gold also contributed to substantial strength among gold stocks, as reflected by the 2.6 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index.

Semiconductor, computer hardware and natural gas stocks also saw considerable strength, while airline, software and brokerage stocks showed significant moves to the downside.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are falling $0.32 to $64.31 a barrel after jumping $0.67 to $64.63 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after climbing $67.50 to $5,098.50 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are slipped $7.60 to $5,090.90 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 153.34 yen versus the 153.24 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1879 compared to yesterday’s $1.1870.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mixed on Thursday as a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report spurred optimism about the world’s largest economy but dented hopes for Federal Reserve rate cuts in the near future.

Precious metals dipped, with gold falling half a percent to trade below $5,060 an ounce as the U.S. dollar strengthened after the release of the solid jobs data.

Oil prices were slightly higher in Asian trading amid simmering tensions between the United States and Iran.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index inched up 0.1 percent to 4,134.02 after reports emerged that the United States and China are likely to extend their trade truce for up to a year when President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping meet in Beijing in early April.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.9 percent to 27,032.54, dragged down by technology stocks.

Japanese markets ended little changed after a choppy session as traders returned from a holiday. The Nikkei 225 Index finished marginally lower at 57,639.84, after climbing past the 58,000 mark at the start of trading. The broader Topix Index settled 0.7 percent higher at 3,882.16.

The yen pulled back after a three-day rally, while government bonds surged following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s pledge to pursue “responsible” stimulus following her historic election win.

Cosmetics maker Shiseido soared nearly 16 percent after its fourth quarter earnings and full-year forecast beat analyst estimates.

Automaker Honda Motor tumbled 3.5 percent after posting a steep decline in its third-quarter operating profit. Technology investor SoftBank Group jumped 2.4 percent before announcing its financial results.

Seoul stocks reached a new milestone, led by advances in heavyweight technology shares. Samsung Electronics surged 6.4 percent and SK Hynix added 3.3 percent. The Kospi closed 3.1 percent higher at 5,522.27.

Australian markets eked out modest gains as robust earnings from ANZ Group lifted banking stocks and offset declines in healthcare and technology stocks. While ANZ shares jumped 8.5 percent, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.3 percent to 9,043.50.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index edged up by 0.2 percent to 13,531.48. Rubber goods supplier Skellerup Holdings gained 1.8 percent after reporting record half-year earnings and raising its full-year guidance.

Europe

European stocks traded at record high levels on Thursday as investors cheered upbeat earnings from the likes of Legrand, Hermes and Siemens.

Meanwhile, traders shrugged off data that showed the U.K. economy grew less than forecast in the fourth quarter.

GDP inched up 0.1 percent sequentially, the same pace of growth as seen in the previous quarter and slightly weaker than the forecast of 0.2 percent as business investment shrank and services stagnated.

On a yearly basis, GDP was up 1.0 percent compared to economists’ forecast of 1.2 percent.

While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is just above the unchanged line, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1.0 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 1.4 percent.

Legrand has rallied. The French electrical and digital building infrastructure group raised its dividend and set a 2026 growth goal of 10-15 percent excluding currency effects.

Luxury group Hermes International has also moved notably higher after reporting another quarter of steady revenue growth.

Schroders shares have also skyrocketed after the investment management firm agreed to a £9.9bn takeover by U.S. asset manager Nuveen.

German industrial giant Siemens has also jumped. The firm raised its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings view and backed revenue growth forecast after reporting better-than-expected results during the first quarter.

EssilorLuxottica has also soared after reporting an 18 percent surge in fourth-quarter sales, riding a boom in demand for AI-powered glasses.

Specialty-care biopharmaceutical firm Ipsen has also surged after reporting strong 2025 results and providing robust guidance for 2026.

British American Tobacco shares were modestly higher in London. The tobacco giant reported a 2.3 percent rise in annual profit and announced an increased £1.3 billion share buyback for 2026.

On the other hand, consumer goods giant Unilever has moved to the downside after underlying sales grew 3.5 percent in 2025.

Telecoms group Swisscom has also moved notably lower after reporting lower net income for full-year 2025.

U.S. Economic News

The Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing a modest decrease in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended February 7th.

The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 227,000, a decrease of 5,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 232,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to fall to 220,000 from the 231,000 originally reported for the previous week.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average rose to 219,500, an increase of 7,000 from the previous week’s revised average of 212,500.

At 10 am ET, the National Association of Realtors is due to release its report on existing home sales in the month of January.

Existing home sales are expected to tumble by 3.4 percent to an annual rate of 4.20 million in January after surging by 5.1 percent to an annual rate of 4.35 million in December.

The Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month’s auction of $25 billion worth of thirty-year bonds at 1 pm ET.

At 7 pm ET, Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan is due to delivery welcome remarks before a Global Perspectives event.

Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran is scheduled to participate in a conversation before the Global Perspectives event at 7:05 pm ET.