Stock market looks to open higher ahead of reports on jobless claims, leading indicators

Stocks signal higher open ahead of jobs numbers

NEW YORK — Stocks looked likely to open higher Thursday ahead of a report on jobless claims and a gauge of future economic activity.

Stock futures ticked higher after the market ended little changed Wednesday. Traders are focusing on the government’s weekly snapshot of the job market.

Analysts expect that the number of people putting in new claims for jobless benefits fell last week for a fourth straight week. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters predict that claims fell by 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 450,000. The numbers are due at 8:30 a.m. EDT

The jobs report is one of the mostly closely watched each week because a recovery in the labor market is crucial to a sustained rebound in the economy. The government’s May jobs report found that employers added only 41,000 private-sector jobs. That was far weaker than expected and raised concerns that a rebound in jobs was slowing. The unemployment rate fell to 9.7 percent from 9.9 percent.

Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 32, or 0.3 percent, to 10,376. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 3.40, or 0.3 percent, to 1,113.00, while Nasdaq 100 index futures advanced 5.00, or 0.3 percent, to 1,911.00.

After the opening bell, traders will be awaiting the Conference Board’s index of leading economic indicators. Economists expect the measure, which is designed to forecast economic activity in the next three to six months, will increase 0.5 percent in May after a surprise slide in April. The drop in April was the first since March 2009, when major stock market indexes bounced off 12-year lows. The report is expected at 10 a.m.

Another midmorning report is expected to signal that consumer prices dropped for a second month in May. Analysts forecast that the government’s Consumer Price Index slipped 0.2 percent. A tight job market and excess capacity at the nation’s factories are some of the forces helping to keep inflation at bay.

Investors also will be watching BP PLC CEO who is expected to tell a House panel that he is “personally devastated” by the Gulf of Mexico rig explosion and oil spill and that they “never should have happened.” A copy of Hayward’s testimony was obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press.

Bond prices fell, pushing interest rates higher. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 3.28 percent from 3.27 percent late Wednesday.

The dollar slipped against other major currencies. The euro climbed to $1.2375. A stronger euro has been helping U.S. stocks in the past month because traders see it as a sign of confidence in Europe’s ability to cut its debt without jeopardizing an economic rebound.

Crude oil fell 31 cents to $77.36 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In afternoon trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.7 percent, Germany’s DAX index climbed 0.6 percent, and France’s CAC-40 rose 0.8 percent. Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 0.7 percent.