US stocks surged higher in premarket trading on Friday, driven by strong tech earnings. Amazon's shares rose by about 6.5% after the company exceeded Wall Street's earnings expectations. Similarly, Intel saw a nearly 5% increase following its robust earnings report and improved forward guidance.
Investors are eagerly awaiting the release of October's jobs report at 8:30 am ET. The previous jobs report outperformed expectations, with positive revisions for previous months. However, economists are predicting a potential weakening in today's report due to factors such as striking workers and the lingering impacts of Hurricanes Milton and Helene.
Despite these challenges, market analysts anticipate that the reaction to the jobs report will likely follow a 'good news is good news' pattern. Investors are expected to focus on the broader macroeconomic implications of the data rather than any dovish policy signals from a potentially soft report.
Michael Brown, a senior research strategist at Pepperstone, noted that there is currently little that could dissuade the Federal Reserve from proceeding with an interest rate cut next week. Looking ahead, next week's agenda includes the highly anticipated US presidential election and the Federal Reserve's upcoming interest rate policy decision.
