Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), on the day of Circle Internet Group’s IPO, in New York City, U.S., June 5, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock market futures were mostly calm on Thursday evening ahead of a key jobs report that is expected to shed light on the health of the U.S. economy.
S&P 500 futures were little changed. Futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up 0.1% while Nasdaq 100 futures shed 0.1%.
The May nonfarm payrolls report is due out before the opening bell on Friday. Economists expect growth of 125,000 jobs, according to Dow Jones, which would represent a decline from the prior month but likely not enough of one to cause a surge in recession fears.
Some recent economic data has pointed to a slowdown in the U.S., raising questions about the impact of the multi-front tariff negotiations and the next steps for the Federal Reserve.
“The Federal Reserve is navigating a narrow path. While they expect the economy to soften, persistent trade uncertainty is ripe ground for monetary policy missteps. … With both large and small businesses indicating that they plan to hold onto their workers and ride out the tariff storm, only a modest weakening in the jobs market is likely, further reducing the urgency for Fed support,” said Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management.
The move in futures comes as the major indexes are holding on to modest gains for the week. The S&P 500 and Dow are up 0.5% and 0.1%, respectively, week to date, while the Nasdaq Composite is up nearly 1%.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.8%. Those indexes were weighed down by Tesla, which tumbled 14% as CEO Elon Musk sparred with President Donald Trump on social media. The Dow, which does not include Tesla, was off by 108 points, or less than 0.3%.
Earnings reports could also be a key theme on Friday. Broadcom, Lululemon and Docusign all moved lower in extended trading after releasing their quarterly reports.
