Investing.com –Wall Street futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Thursday as U.S. stocks looked set to follow August’s trend ahead of the publication of a slew of data later in the session as well as Friday’s jobs report.
The blue-chip Dow futures rose 39 points, or 0.21%, by 7:03AM ET (11:03AM GMT), the S&P 500 futures gained 4 points, or 0.18%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 14 points, or 0.28%.
Thursday’s session looked set to start September on the right foot after a lackluster August characterized by low volume and low volatility.
The S&P 500 ended August flat, down just 0.1% on the month, without a single session in which it recorded a 1% move in either direction in closing prices.
The trend looked set to continue on Thursday with the major economic event not arriving until Friday with the publication of the August nonfarm payrolls report.
However, markets will digest reports on weekly jobless claims and second quarter nonfarm productivity, both due at 8:30AM ET (12:30GMT) on Thursday.
Activity in the manufacturing sector will also be measured with the revision to Markit’s manufacturing PMI data for August at 9:45AM ET (13:45GMT) and the publication of ISM manufacturing for the same period at 10:00AM ET (14:00GMT), as well as a report on construction spending in July.
Outside the data, markets will also look forward to remarks from Cleveland Fed president Loretta Mester at 12:25ET (16:25GMT). Though the voting member was scheduled to speak on community development, hints to her views on monetary may be gleaned from the following audience and media Q&A.
After hawkish signals from senior Fed officials in recent days revived speculation of a near-term rate hike, Fed fund futures are currently pricing in a 24% chance of an increase in September. December odds for a hike were at 56.9%, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
Gold prices traded at the lowest level since mid-June on Thursday, amid indications that the Federal Reserve is gearing up to hike interest rates at its September meeting if Friday’s jobs data gives a strong reading.
Futures held around the $1,310-level after briefly falling to $1,307, a level not seen since June 24.
The precious metal is sensitive to moves in U.S. rates, which lift the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as bullion, while boosting the dollar in which it is priced.
In that regard, the dollar held steady near three-week highs against the other major rivals on Thursday.
In oil markets, prices steadied after Saudi Arabia said OPEC was moving towards a common position on oil production that some investors think could support prices, but concerns over the global supply glut continued to weigh on sentiment.
A day earlier, New York-traded oil futures sank $1.65, or 3.56%, after weekly supply data showed a surprisingly large build in U.S. crude and distillate stockpiles and a smaller-than-expected drawdown in gasoline.
On Thursday, U.S. crude futures was unchanged at $44.70 by 7:04AM ET (11:04AM GMT), while Brent oil slipped 0.17% to $46.81.
Elsewhere, official PMI data released earlier Thursday showed activity in China's manufacturing sector unexpectedly expanded at its fastest pace in nearly two years in August.
However, a separate private survey of small-to-medium sized companies revealed operating conditions in the sector stagnated. The Caixin manufacturing PMI slipped to 50.0, the no-change mark which separates expansion from contraction, from 50.6 in July.
The British pound jumped against the dollar to trade near a one-month high after the release of upbeat U.K. manufacturing activity data added to optimism over the strength of the economy post-Brexit.
GBP/USD touched a daily peak of 1.3266 on the back of the data, before falling back to 1.3243 by 7:06AM ET (11:06AM GMT), up 0.79% on the day.