Stock Market Today: At 7:06 AM, GIFT Nifty futures also indicated a weak start for the bourses, trading 66 points lower at 25,410 levels.
US stocks ended lower on Thursday, ahead of the highly anticipated monthly payrolls report. The Dow Jones dipped by 0.44 per cent, while the S&P 500 fell 0.17 per cent. The tech-heavy Nasdaq saw a slight decline of 0.04 per cent.
Friday’s jobs report for September is critical for shaping the outlook on US interest rates, with economists predicting an addition of 140,000 jobs and an unemployment rate holding steady at 4.2 per cent.
Additionally, official data revealed a marginal increase in unemployment claims, which rose to 225,000 due to disruptions from labour strikes and Hurricane Helene, adding further complexity to the labour market scenario.
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Friday, reflecting losses on Wall Street and ongoing concerns over escalating tensions in the Middle East.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped over 1 per cent. Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.09 per cent, and the broad-based Topix rose marginally. South Korea’s Kospi also gained 0.49 per cent.
The surge in oil prices is adding to the uncertainty, with Brent crude leaping more than 5 per cent on Thursday, marking its biggest rise in a year. This also marked oil’s third consecutive session of gains as concerns grew that Israel might target Iran’s oil industry in retaliation for Tehran’s recent ballistic missile attack.
Gold prices remained steady on Thursday as rising safe-haven demand amid escalating tensions in the Middle East countered the pressure from a stronger dollar.
Spot gold was unchanged at $2,657.89 per ounce, having reached a record high of $2,685.
