U.S. stock futures drift higher with nonfarm payrolls in focus

Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures rose slightly on Thursday evening, with market focus squarely on upcoming labor market data for more cues on the economy and interest rates.

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Soaring oil prices, after a report said Washington was sending more troops to the Middle East, also kept Wall Street on edge, as did a continued surge in Treasury yields.

S&P 500 Futures rose 0.1% to 7,732.0 points by 19:54 ET (23:54 GMT). Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.23% to 30,831.50 points, while Dow Jones Futures rose 0.07% to 51,276.0 points.

Nonfarm payrolls data for September is due on Friday morning, and is widely expected to factor into expectations for interest rates.

Any signs of labor market strength give the Federal Reserve more headroom to hike interest rates, especially as inflation remains above the central bank's 2% annual target.

Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan said on Thursday evening that interest rates will need to rise by at least 50 basis points to curb sticky inflation. Separately, Fed Governor Lisa Cook warned that artificial intelligence-driven inflation was a major risk for 2027.

Earlier in the day, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari also said he expects more rate hikes will be needed to cool the economy going into 2027, although he was unsure whether the next hike would come later in October.

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Friday's payrolls print comes after PCE price index data for August, released on Wednesday, showed inflation eased slightly but remained well above the Fed's 2% annual target.

Sticky inflation and labor market strength are expected to set the Fed up for more interest rate hikes– a scenario that bodes poorly for Wall St.

Wall Street indexes rose slightly on Thursday, aided chiefly by gains in technology and chipmaking stocks following blowout earnings from Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU).

The memory chip maker added 3% and spurred a 1.6% gain in the SOX after it clocked stronger-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter earnings, and also presented an above-consensus outlook.

Micron said AI-fueled demand for chips remained robust and was expected to remain high in the coming years.

Gains in tech helped the S&P 500 close up 0.2%, while the NASDAQ Composite and Dow Jones Industrial Average firmed slightly.

Markets were spooked by Treasury yields extending their surge on Thursday, with the 10-year benchmark rising further past 5% and to a 24-year high.

High oil prices also weighed, as Brent surged 4% after a report said the U.S. was sending more troops to the Middle East, and that President Donald Trump planned to bomb Iran more in November.

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