
Jobs Report Ahead, Oil Jumps Over 6%
PUBLISHED | 2 min read
U.S. stock futures are modestly lower in premarket trading and are extending this week’s losses amid the war in Iran and spiking oil prices while traders await new U.S. jobs data.
Oil prices are up 6% near $86 a barrel, as investors weighed the impact of the U.S.-Iran war on global energy supply. Crude is at its highest level in nearly two years and has spiked over 25% this week.
Aside from headline risks, investors will watch February’s nonfarm payrolls, due at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists are looking for growth of 58,000 jobs, down from the 130,000 payrolls added in January. The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 4.3%.
Snapshot (as of 7 AM ET)
- Oil (/CL) – Oil prices are up another 6.5% near $86 a barrel this morning, wiping out an earlier dip as investors continued to assess the impact of the U.S.-Iran war on global energy markets. Crude prices are at their highest level in nearly 2 years and are up over 25% this week.
- Gold (/GC) – Gold futures are up 0.5% near $5,100 on safe-haven demand amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, but was headed for a weekly loss, as mounting inflation worries dimmed prospects for interest rate cuts.
- Bitcoin (/BTC) – The Crypto Future is down over 2% near 70,000 in premarket trading.
- VIX – The CBOE Volatility Index was up 12.3% on Thursday and settled at 23.75 as stocks fell. The VIX is up another 8% this morning as stocks are under pressure.
- U.S. Dollar (/DX) – The dollar is flat at 99.3.
Biggest Premarket Movers (as of 7 AM ET - Mark % Change)
- CF Industries (CF): +4.26%
- Dow (DOW): +3.83%
- Mosaic (MOS): +3.50%
- Occidental Petroleum (OXY): +3.17
- APA Corp. (APA): +2.84%
- The Trade Desk (TTD): -2.79%
- Corning (GLW): -2.78%
- Applied Materials (AMAT): -2.75%
- Cooper Companies (COO): -2.74%
- Coinbase (COIN): -2.59%
Economic Data
- 8:30 AM ET: Jobs Report, Retail Sales (Delayed)
- 10:00 AM ET: Business Inventories
- 1:30 PM ET: Fed’s Hammack Speaks
- 3:00 PM ET: Consumer Credit
Notable Earnings
- Premarket: GCO
- Postmarket: None
- Premarket Monday: KFY, ZIM
- Postmarket Monday: CASY, HPE, MTN
Upgrades/Downgrades
- CFRA upgrades Netflix (NFLX) to Buy from Hold
- Huber Research upgrades The Trade Desk (TTD) to Overweight from Underweight
- UBS upgrades BorgWarner (BWA) to Neutral from Sell
- Wedbush downgrades The Trade Desk (TTD) to Underperform from Neutral
- Morgan Stanley downgrades AES Corp. (AES) to Equal Weight from Overweight

