Stock futures inched higher on Wednesday as traders looked ahead to the release of the delayed January jobs report.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials grabbed 54 points, or 0.1%, to 50.327
Futures for the S&P 500 index picked up 7.75 points, or 0.1% to 6,969.70
Futures for the NASDAQ gained 42 points, or 0.2%, to 25,260.25.
Traders are looking ahead to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ release of the January nonfarm payrolls report due Wednesday morning. The data had been delayed due to a partial government shutdown that ended on Feb. 3.
Economists expect that the latest jobs report will show little to no growth in January. The Dow Jones consensus is calling for a gain of 55,000, compared to a December increase of 50,000.
Economists also see the unemployment rate landing at 4.4%. In addition, traders will be on the lookout for a batch of revisions from the BLS, which could shed some light on the state of the U.S. jobs market and economy.
A lackluster jobs report would add to negative sentiment in the market that was driven by weaker-than-expected consumer data released on Tuesday. A new report showed that consumer spending in December was flat, missing the 0.4% monthly gain expected from economists polled by Dow Jones.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong advanced 0.3%, while markets in Japan were closed for holiday.
Oil prices prospered $1.44 to $65.40 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices spiked $87.30 to $5,118.30 U.S an ounce.
