U.S. stock -index futures pointed to a higher open on Thursday, after jobless claims came in just under under expectations, with the data coming a day before Friday's all-important non-farm payrolls.
Last week's , just below the expectations of 340,000.
Initial claims follow Wednesday's ADP private sector jobs data, which came in stronger than expected — leading some economists to boost their expectations for Friday's non-farm payrolls.
"Jobless claims are a leading indicator, whereas the jobs report is a lagging one, so I want to see claims continue to move lower. The ADP report signaled what might be an above-consensus release coming out of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday," said Mark Luschini, chief market strategist at Janney Montgomery, speaking ahead of the data.
