Stocks mostly higher ahead of US jobs report as oil steadies
Source: AP-Excite
By YURI KAGEYAMA
TOKYO (AP) — World stocks were mostly higher ahead of a monthly employment report that will confirm whether the U.S. remains a bright spot in an otherwise languishing world economy.
KEEPING SCORE: France's CAC 40 was up 0.1 percent at 4,265.87 and Germany's DAX added 0.1 percent to 9,847.90. Britain's FTSE 100 shed 0.1 percent to 6,566.36. U.S. shares were set for a lackluster open, with Dow futures slipping 0.1 percent to 17,808. S&P 500 were little changed at 2,054.30. Asian stocks posted solid gains.
JOBS REPORT: Markets are waiting for monthly U.S. employment figures due to be released later in the day, as a sign not only of the American economy's health but also as an indicator of when the Federal Reserve might start raising interest rates. Economists forecast that employers added a healthy 243,000 jobs and that the unemployment rate remained at a six-year low of 5.8 percent. In November, the economy gained 321,000 jobs, the most in nearly three years.
EUROPE WATCH: Global markets have been swayed by prospects for the European economy lately. With recent economic indicators looking grim, many analysts expect the European Central Bank to follow the Bank of Japan with quantitative easing in the near future. The super easy monetary policy is designed to hold down long-term interest rates and stimulate borrowing and spending. Data expected in Europe on Friday includes French and German trade and industrial production and a slew of U.K. indicators.
FULL story at link.
A currency trader stretches while working at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Korea Exchange Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 9, 2015. Asian stocks extended gains Friday after other global markets bounced back from a rocky start to the year and oil prices stabilized after dramatic plunges. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index rose 1.05 percent, or 20.05, to close at 1,924.70. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
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