Stock futures modestly lower ahead of jobs report

[December 02, 2009]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Stock futures are modestly lower ahead of Wednesday's opening as investors await a private group's report on jobs.

The Federal Reserve's take on regional economic activity is also set to be released in the afternoon.

Overseas markets were mixed.

In the first of three straight days of employment reports, the ADP National Employment Report is expected to show 160,000 private sector jobs were lost in November, according to economists polled by Thomson Reuters. That would mark the eighth consecutive month of declining job losses, providing further evidence the country's economy is recovering.

ADP said 203,000 jobs were lost in October.

The report is due out at 8:15 a.m. EST.

The group's jobs report is often used as a gauge for Friday's monthly unemployment report from the Labor Department. Economists expect the unemployment rate remained flat at 10.2 percent last month.

Data on weekly jobless claims is due out Thursday.

A stabilization in job losses and eventual rehiring of workers is considered vital to a continued recovery.

Ahead of the opening bell, Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 18, or 0.2 percent, to 10,443. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures declined 2.00, or 0.2 percent, to 1,106.40, while Nasdaq 100 index futures fell 2.25, or 0.1 percent, to 1,789.75.

Investors hunting for further signs of a rebound will review the Fed's beige book report, which is due out at 2 p.m. EST. The report breaks down economic activity by region.

Stocks surged on Tuesday, resuming their upward climb that was temporarily halted by debt concerns in Dubai. The months-long pattern of a weakening dollar pushing commodities prices, as well as energy and materials stocks, higher continued.

New economic data remained mixed, but indicated signs of modest improvement. A report on manufacturing showed the sector expanded in November at a slower pace than the previous month, but new orders were picking up. That signals expansion is likely in the coming months.

The Dow and S&P both gained 1.2 percent, while the Nasdaq composite index jumped 1.5 percent.

On Wednesday, the dollar modestly declined against most major currencies, while gold prices rose, again touching a new high. Gold, which is trading at $1,208.90 an ounce, rose as high as $1,218.40 an ounce in earlier trading.

Meanwhile, bond prices were little changed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, was unchanged at 3.29 percent compared with late Tuesday. The yield on the three-month T-bill, considered one of the safest investments, rose to 0.06 percent from 0.04 percent.

Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.4 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 slipped 0.5 percent, Germany's DAX index declined 0.3 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.2 percent.

[Associated Press; By STEPHEN BERNARD]

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