Intel forecast boosts futures, but May jobs report is wild card before the open.
June 4, 2004: 5:46 AM EDT
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - There was positive sentiment ahead of Friday's U.S. stock market open and the May employment report, with Intel's cheerier forecast a factor.
Early Friday, futures pointed to a higher open. But the jobs report due at 8:30 a.m. ET is likely to alter the picture.
Concerns about the May employment report helped send the Nasdaq composite index down 1.4 percent and the Dow Jones industrial average lower by 0.7 percent. For the week to date, the Nasdaq is 26-1/2 points lower while the Dow is up by more than 7 points (see chart for details).
Among U.S. stocks trading in Europe, Intel (INTC: Research, Estimates) was up more than 1 percent. The world's largest chipmaker tightened its sales forecast Thursday, with the new midpoint higher than the prior one, and indicated that demand for its products remains strong.
Also helping bolster market sentiment ahead of the open was a further dip in oil futures in the wake of Thursday's OPEC decision to boost production quotas. In electronic trading, U.S. crude futures pulled back 37 cents to $38.91 a barrel, while Brent oil futures slipped 45 cents to $35.95 a barrel in London.
Asian-Pacific stocks ended mostly higher, with Tokyo's Nikkei index up 0.9 percent. European stocks were higher in late-morning trade. (Check the latest on world markets)
Treasury prices edged down in early trading, sending the 10-year note yield up to 4.72 percent from 4.71 percent late Thursday. The dollar weakened against the yen, but was up a little versus the euro. Gold was unchanged.
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