NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks were pointed to slightly higher open Friday, hinting at a fourth consecutive advance, but holding onto the tentative gains depends on a key employment reading.
At 7:05 a.m. ET, Dow Jones industrial average, Standard & Poor's 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were higher, with a comparison to fair value suggesting a mild start for Wall Street. The futures pulled off earlier lows, but just barely.
Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance and give an indication of how markets may open when trading begins in New York.
Jobs: Investors will be watching the Labor Department's March jobs report, which is due out at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Employers are forecast to have slashed 658,000 jobs from their payrolls last month, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The unemployment rate, generated by a separate survey, is expected to have risen to 8.5% from 8.1% in February.
"If the payroll number comes in the same as expected, or better than expected, I assume it'll provide the catalyst for a rally," said David Jones, chief market strategist at IG Markets. "If the payrolls come in worse than expected, it'll bring people down to Earth, and we'll see the weakness return."
If the Dow Jones does rally and crosses the 8,000 mark, Jones said the market will face its "next big test" in trying to breach the 8,500 level that markets achieved in January.
Economy: Also on tap is a reading on the services sector in March. The Institute for Supply Management services report comes at 10 a.m. ET.
Stocks around the world have risen sharply this week amid growing optimism that the worst of the economic downturn is over. The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all advanced about 3% Thursday.
Bernanke: At noon ET, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to speak about the Fed's balance sheet in Charlotte, N.C., at the annual Credit Market Symposium of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
G-20: The meeting of the leaders of the world's largest economies ended on a high note with President Obama pleased with a package worth more than $1 trillion to tackle the global economic crisis. (G-20 winners and losers)
World markets: The global stock rally lost some of its momentum. Asian stocks posted modest gains while major European markets were mixed.
Oil and money: Oil prices rose 59 cents a barrel to $53.23. The dollar rose versus the euro and the yen, but slipped against the British pound.Link: http://money.cnn.com/2009/04/03/markets/stockswatch/index.htm?postversion=2009040307
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