By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - U.S. stock futures ticked higher in early APAC deals on Friday, following a whipsaw session that saw all three major benchmark indices closing lower amid a tumultuous September as risk sentiment waned on persistent inflation fears, supply chain bottlenecks, slowing growth and rising long term bond yields.
During the regular session on Thursday, the S&P 500 fell 51.92 points or 1.19% to 4307.53, the Dow lost 546.8 points or 1.59% to 33843.93 and the NASDAQ Composite declined 63.86 points or 0.44% to 14448.58. For the month, the S&P 500 lost 4.8%, breaking a seven-month winning streak and posting the worst monthly performance since March 2020. The Dow and the Nasdaq Composite fell 4.3% and 5.3% respectively, both suffering their worst months of the year.
Futures traded 0.3%, 0.28% and 0.32% higher respectively.
In policy news, President Joe Biden signed a short-term appropriations bill that will keep the government running through Dec. 3, avoiding a shutdown hours before funding would have lapsed.
On the data front, initial jobless claims for the prior week came in at 362,000. Economists were expecting a print of 335,000, according to Dow Jones. The October jobs report, which is seen as a key indicator for the Federal Reserve’s next steps, will be released on Oct. 8
Investors now await key inflation data due later in the session to gauge the state of price pressures as the economy continues its post-pandemic recovery. The closely watched core personal consumption expenditures price index is expected to rise 0.2% in August and 3.5% year over year, after jumping 3.6% year over year in July, touching the highest level since May 1991.