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 The report comes as investors continue to grapple with concerns about tightness in the credit market, the effect of still-high energy prices and a slumping housing sector.
Wall Street will also be looking to Europe for interest rate decisions due Thursday from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.
But investors' focus likely will be on the Labor Department employment report due Friday. The monthly report draws widespread attention because a spike in unemployment could upend consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. Investors are also anxious to see if any more jobs were lost last month.
The weekly jobless claims reading, which could shape confidence for Friday's report, is due at 8:30 a.m. EDT.
Futures contracts showed modest moves early Thursday. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 22, or 0.18 percent, to 12,426. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 4.10, or 0.30 percent, to 1,381.70, and Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 6.50, or 0.32 percent, to 2,027.25.
Stocks finished mixed Wednesday following sharp declines in the first two sessions of the week.
Bond prices fell early Thursday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.97 percent from 3.98 percent late Wednesday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices fell.
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 Light, sweet crude rose 6 cents to $122.36 in premarket electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average finished down 0.65 percent. In morning trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.18 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.23 percent, and France's CAC-40 rose 0.19 percent.
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On the Net:
New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com/
Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com/
[Associated Press; By TIM PARADIS]
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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