By Mark DeCambre, MarketWatch

Dow industrials erased most of a 785-point drop on Thursday in a wild session

All three U.S. benchmarks on Friday were poised to fall ahead of a key employment report that could help determine the rate-hike plans for the Federal Reserve.

How are the benchmarks performing?

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were off 133 points, or 0.5%, at 24,774, while S&P 500 index futures were down 13.35 points, or 0.5%, at 2,677.75. Nasdaq-100 futures were trading 37 points, or 0.5%, lower at 6,786.

Check out:A death cross for the S&P 500 highlights a stock market in tatters (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/a-looming-death-cross-for-the-sp-500-highlights-a-stock-market-in-tatters-2018-12-06)

On Thursday, the Dow declined 79.40 points, or 0.3%, to 24,947.67, though the index was down by as many as 785 points at its nadir. The S&P 500 index dropped 4.11 points, 0.2%, to 2,696.95, and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 29.83 points, or 0.4%, to 7,188.26.

For the week, the Dow and S&P 500 are set to show declines of 2.3%, while the Nasdaq has thus far declined 1.9%.

Read:The Dow just slashed a 785-point plunge, marking its most stunning reversal since March (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-dow-just-slashed-a-785-point-plunge-marking-its-most-stunning-reversal-since-march-2018-12-06)

The Thursday afternoon rebound put the Dow and the S&P back into positive territory for 2018, while the Nasdaq built on its gains to rise 4.1% for the year.

What's driving the market?

Wall Street is awaiting a key employment report due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, with the nonfarm-payrolls report for November slated to show that 190,000 jobs were created. A steady unemployment rate at 3.7% is expected, with wage growth for the period rising 0.3%, according to average estimates of economists surveyed by MarketWatch.

The jobs data comes after a frenetic session that had been colored by fears of intensifying trade battles between the U.S. and China after the arrest in Canada of a top Chinese tech executive at China telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies, which amplified worries in a market already skittish about relations between Beijing and Washington on tariffs and intellectual-property rights.

Read:Huawei arrest creates concerns in Silicon Valley as well as abroad (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/huawei-arrest-creates-concerns-in-silicon-valley-as-well-as-abroad-2018-12-06)

Those fears combined with a persistent drop in crude-oil prices have made investors particularly on edge, fretting that global economic growth is imperiled.

Against that backdrop, the jobs report may provide more clarity on where Jerome Powell's Federal Open Market Committee will stand on monetary policy when he convenes a two-day policy meeting Dec. 18-19.

Signs that the FOMC may take a less aggressive tack in normalizing rates have increased, with The Wall Street Journal on Thursday reporting that Fed officials are considering a new wait-and-see mentality (https://www.wsj.com/articles/restrained-inflation-reduces-urgency-for-quarterly-rate-increase-pattern-1544127856?mod=searchresults&page=1&pos=1) at that December meeting.

Expectations for a December interest-rate increase are showing a 73% probability, down from 83% a week ago, according to CME Group data, with expectations increasing that policy makers may cool the rate-hike path in 2019.

Which stocks are in focus?

Shares of Big Lots Inc.(BIG) are trading down more than 13% before the bell Friday, after wider-than-expected third-quarter loss.

Shares of Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) are in focus after the chip maker announced fiscal fourth-quarter profits and sales Thursday evening that topped Wall Street expectations. The stock is up 4% in premarket action Friday.

Ulta Beauty Inc. (ULTA) shares are down 6.8% in premarket trade Friday, after a Thursday evening earnings release that predicted weaker holiday sales that analysts hoped.

Shares of Altria Group (MO)are in focus after the company announced it would take a 45% ownership stake in the cannabis-firm Cronos Group Inc. (CRON.T), worth $1.8 billion. The stock is up 1.8% in premarket action, while trading of Cronos stock was halted and will resume at 7:45 a.m. Eastern.

What other data and Fed speakers are ahead?

How are other markets trading?

Asian markets traded mostly higher Friday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-inch-forward-amid-us-china-friction-2018-12-06), with the Nikkei 225 rising 0.8% and markets in South Korea and Australia advancing on the day. The Shanghai Composite Index was virtually flat, with gains of less than 0.1%.

European markets were also trading higher Friday, with both the Stoxx Europe 600 and the FTSE 100 in the green.

 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 07, 2018 07:34 ET (12:34 GMT)

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