02.07.2009 17:06

Before the bell:

U.S. stocks were poised to open lower Thursday, the end of a holiday-shortened week, as investors awaited the government's June jobs report. Futures measure current index values against the perceived future performance. They can be used as a forecast for trading after the bell, though they're not always an accurate harbinger.

On Wednesday, Wall Street started the third quarter with a modest rally. Reports on manufacturing and housing indicated that the pace of the recession is slowing. The biggest market-mover Thursday will be the monthly employment report, said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Jefferies & Co. He said that a higher-than expected job report from Automatic Data Processing on Wednesday is a hint that the U.S. government's payroll numbers might disappoint. "There is probably more of an opportunity for this number to come out worse than expected," said Hogan, referring to the employment report. Manus Cranny, market analyst at MF Global in London, said futures were down because of "a little bit of nervousness" ahead of the employment numbers, which will play a crucial role in deciding the direction of Wall Street. "We will be crying in our cups if this number upsets the market," said Cranny. The June employment report is due out from the Labor Department at 8:30 a.m. ET. Employers are expected to have cut 365,000 jobs from their payrolls after cutting a much smaller-than-expected 345,000 in the previous month. The unemployment rate, generated by a separate survey, is expected to have risen to 9.6% from a nearly 26-year high of 9.4% in May. The government will also release its weekly initial claims report, measuring the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time. The measure is expected to dip to 615,000 from 627,000 the week before. After the start of trading, the Commerce Department will release the May factory orders report. Orders are expected to have risen 0.9% after climbing 0.7% in April. All financial markets are closed Friday for the Independence Day holiday.