US pre-open: Dow Jones on track for eighth-straight winning session

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were in the green ahead of the bell on Friday as the blue-chip Dow Jones was on track for an eighth-straight winning session. As of 1230 BST, Dow Jones futures were up 0.26%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.33% and 0.42% stronger, respectively.

The Dow closed 331.37 points higher on Thursday as recent comments from the Federal Reserve that an interest rate hike was unlikely to be on the horizon continued to drive markets amid a strong Q1 earnings season and following softer-than-expected jobs data.

Scope Markets' Joshua Mahony said: "US markets looks set for a strong flourish after a week that has been dominated by buying pressure. Yesterday's sharp jump in unemployment claims helped build on the recent payrolls decline, helping to build a narrative that the jobs market has started to take a turn for the worst. However, this perception that the Fed will soon be forced into slashing rates could be challenged next week, with the CPI release likely to hammer home fact that resurgent price pressures make a return to 2% difficult to see as things stand."

On the macro front, a preliminary reading of the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index will be published at 1500 BST, while the Federal Government's April budget statement was due for release at 1900 BST.

Elsewhere, a number of central bankers will make comments on Friday, with governor Michelle Bowman, Minneapolis president Neel Kashkari, Dallas president Lorie Logan, Chicago president Austan Goolsbee and vice chairman Michael Barr all scheduled to deliver speeches.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com