Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, United States, September 28, 2026.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock futures rose slightly on Friday as traders awaited the release of the September jobs report.
S&P 500 Futures Contracts were up 0.26%, while futures linked to Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 125 points, or 0.24%. Nasdaq-100 Futures Contracts advanced by 0.42%.
During a normal trading day, the Dow and the Nasdaq Composite ended the session slightly higher. THE S&P500 posted a 0.2% advance to conclude the first trading day of October. All three indexes are poised for weekly losses, with the Dow losing 1.7% over the period.
Stocks in the Asia-Pacific region were mostly lower on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.95%, after rising sharply on Thursday. South Korea Kospi lost 1%. that of Hong Kong Hang Seng Index lost 2.48% after trading resumed after a public holiday. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.35%.
Treasury yields rose to multi-year highs before retreating. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 5.344%, its highest level since 2002. The 30-year Treasury yield also hit a 24-year high.
Oil prices also rose after The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States was sending a third aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East. Brent crude futures gained more than 4% to close at $102.31 a barrel, while U.S. futures West Texas Intermediate futures advanced 2.7% to settle at $92.87 a barrel.
The September nonfarm payrolls report will be in the spotlight Friday, with the Dow Jones consensus calling for employment growth of 84,000 and unemployment to remain at 4.1%.
This report comes as traders reassess the Federal Reserve’s next move. Fed funds futures trading suggests a 72% chance that the central bank will hold firm in October.
Given that current rhetoric suggests the labor market is stable, a good jobs report alone probably wouldn’t push the Fed to raise rates in October, said Christopher Hodge, chief U.S. economist at Natixis CIB Americas. Hodge expects growth in the manufacturing and construction sector amid data center construction.
“We expect payrolls to slow down from August’s breakneck pace, but still post solid gains. We expect payrolls to increase by 60,000, which, if realized, would bring the three-month rolling average of gains to 81,000,” Hodge said.
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