MW: Job losses not 'end of the world' for U.S. stock futures
U.S. stock futures on Friday pointed to opening gains, with investors taking in stride word of an additional 598,000 job losses last month. "Any number that wasn't the end of the world would be taken as good news," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer, Harris Private Bank, of January's unemployment report. The equities market would have had a negative reaction had the number been 800,000, he added. Near flat ahead of the data, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 66 points to 8,060. Those for the S&P 500 climbed 4.2 points to 844.7, while Nasdaq 100 futures ) added 10.75 points to 1,245.25.
