* 190K U.S. jobs seen added, unemployment rate steady
* Break above 1,330 on S&P may trigger more buying
* NYSE Euronext gains on rival bid from Nasdaq, ICE
* Futures up: Dow 49 pts, S&P 5.2 pts, Nasdaq 8.25 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Adds analyst quote, new NYSE Euronext bid)
By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, April 1 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were
higher on Friday ahead of an employment report expected to show
the economy continued to add jobs.
The government's non-farm payrolls report, due at 8:30 a.m.
EDT [], is seen showing a gain of 190,000 jobs in
March, while the unemployment rate is expected to remain steady
at 8.9 percent. Reports earlier this week suggested the outlook
for the labor market was improving.
European stocks and oil rose in anticipation of the report,
which could confirm the U.S. economy continued to gain strength
despite the turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa and the
nuclear crisis in quake-ravaged Japan.
Investors are also betting a strong payrolls number could
help the S&P 500 break above 1,330, a level that has been
unbreachable despite several attempts in the past month.
Technical momentum may kick in if it breaks past the level,
lifting stocks further.
"A good jobs number could find us challenging the S&P's
2011 high" of 1,344.07, said Andre Bakhos, director of market
analytics at Lek Securities in New York. "That said, this
remains a headline-driven market, and the fear is that at any
time negativity will creep its way back into the mind-set
."
NYSE Euronext <NYX.N> shares rallied in premarket trading
after Nasdaq OMX Group Inc <NDAQ.O> and
IntercontinentalExchange Inc <ICE.N> unveiled a bid to buy the
rival exchanges operator, topping an earlier offer from
Deutsche Boerse AG <DB1Gn.DE>. For details, see
[]
NYSE surged 12 percent to $39.30, while ICE shares were
down 2.9 percent to $119.95.
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> rose 5.2 points and were above fair
value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account
interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures <DJc1> added 49
points and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> rose 8.25 points.
Other macroeconomic data scheduled for Friday includes the
Institute for Supply Management report for March, due at 10
a.m. EDT (1400 GMT). The release follows upbeat Chinese factory
data that eased concerns about monetary tightening.
[]
Friday is the first day of the second quarter. The S&P
gained 5.4 percent in the first quarter.
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For a graphic on asset performance in Q1 click on:
http://r.reuters.com/wur78r
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The World Trade Organization said late Thursday that Boeing
Co <BA.N> received at least $5.3 billion in illegal U.S.
subsidies. []
Goldman Sachs Group Inc <GS.N> borrowed five times from the
U.S. Federal Reserve's discount window since the start of the
financial crisis despite a senior executive's testimony that
the bank used it only once. []
U.S. stocks ended the first quarter with the barest of
moves on Thursday.
(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
