U.S. futures slip lower ahead of jobs data; Dow Jones down 0.11%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a slightly lower open on Friday, as markets awaited the release of upcoming U.S. jobs data amid growing uncertainty over the future of the Federal Reserve's stimulus program.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.11% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.08% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.07% dip.

Investors eyed upcoming U.S. jobs data after the Department of Labor on Thursday said the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance last week fell by 11,000 to 346,000, compared to expectations for a decline of 12,000 to 345,000.

Jobless claims for the preceding week were revised up to 357,000 from a previously reported increase of 354,000.

The data came one day after weak U.S. private sector jobs data lowered expectations that the Federal Reserve would begin to unwind its asset purchase program this year.

The telecom sector was expected to be active, after AT&T said second-quarter TV, Internet and mobile-phone subscriber growth is improving compared with a year earlier. The company added however that the costs to lure customers is cutting into profits.

AT&T shares were down 0.34% in after-hour trade.

Tech stocks were also likely to be in focus, as a number of U.S. technology providers including Apple and Yahoo! said they don’t give the U.S. government direct access to their systems, responding to newspaper reports of a top-secret electronic surveillance program.

The Washington Post and the Guardian reported late Thursday that the National Security Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation access the central servers of nine U.S. Internet companies, extracting audio and video chats, photographs, e-mails, documents and connection logs.

Among pharmaceuticals, GlaxoSmithKline was slated to move after U.S. advisers said the firm's best-selling diabetes pill Avandia may have been overstated and restrictions on prescribing the drug should be eased.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.21%, France’s CAC 40 edged down 0.17%, Germany's DAX declined 0.34%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.14%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index tumbled 1.05%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index retreated 0.85%.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release government data on nonfarm payrolls and the unemployment rate.