Investing.com - U.S. futures jumped on Friday, as markets looked set to continue Thursday's rally before the long holiday weekend.
Investors remained upbeat, buoyed by hopes of progress in the U.S.-China trade dispute. U.S. President Donald Trump said some talks had been held on Thursday, dialling back earlier claims that top Chinese officials had called, while China said the negotiating teams were maintaining communication. Neither side gave details and the latest round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods are still expected to go into effect over the weekend.
Trading is expected to be thin ahead of Monday’s Labor Day holiday.
Nasdaq 100 futures rose 50 points or 0.7% by 6:40 AM ET (10:40 GMT), while Dow futures gained 167 points or 0.6% and S&P 500 futures were up 18 points or 0.6%.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose 0.8%, while bellwether construction company Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) gained 1% and Boeing (NYSE:BA) was up 0.7%. Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) ticked up 0.8% as it hiked prices in China, whose currency has fallen some 3% against the dollar this month.
Elsewhere,Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ:ULTA) slumped 24.2% after it cut its profit forecast.
On the economic front, consumer spending data are due at 8:30 AM ET (12:30 GMT). The Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Index and University of Michigan's consumer sentiment data for August will be released later in the morning.
In commodities, crude oil fell 1% to $56.12 a barrel. Gold futures were down 0.1% to $1,534.70 a troy ounce, while the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was flat at 98.472, having hit its highest in nearly a month overnight.