Wall Street set to open higher on jobs data, Apple results

By Sruthi Shankar

(Reuters) - Wall Street was poised to open higher on Friday after robust October jobs data report added to upbeat investor sentiment following Apple's blowout results and strong initial demand for the company's new iPhone X.

The Labor Department's closely watched employment report showed U.S. job growth rebounded in October after hurricane-related disruptions hurt employment in September.

Nonfarm payrolls rose by 261,000 jobs last month, according to the report. That was the largest gain since July 2016, but was below economists' expectations for an increase of 310,000 jobs.

The unemployment rate fell to 4.1 percent from 4.2 percent and average hourly earnings were largely unchanged. However, the data hinted at slowing labor market momentum as annual wage gains sharply retreated.

However, the data did little to move the case for an interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve in December.

"The headline is all noise, you are starting to adjust for the hurricanes and it's really hard to know exactly what's going to happen," said Subadra Rajappa, head of U.S. rates strategy at Societe Generale in New York.

"I thought the number overall was good."

At 8:42 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 38 points, or 0.16 percent, with 19,723 contracts changing hands.

S&P 500 e-minis were up 2.5 points, or 0.1 percent, with 110,705 contracts traded.

Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 31.75 points, or 0.51 percent, on volume of 28,755 contracts.

Apple surged 3.68 percent to $174.3 in premarket trading after reporting upbeat results and strong initial demand for the new iPhone X. At current levels, Apple was on pace to become the first company to breach $900 billion in market capitalization.

With more than three-fourths of the S&P 500 companies having reported, 72.7 percent have topped profit estimates, led by technology companies.

President Donald Trump on Thursday tapped Fed Governor Jerome Powell to become head of the U.S. central bank, in a largely anticipated move, signaling a continuation of current chair Janet Yellen's monetary policies.

In Washington, House Republicans also disclosed their long-delayed plans for tax cuts on Thursday.

However, the market reacted with skepticism, as many investors believe it is just a starting point with significant negotiations likely ahead.

AIG fell 3.62 percent after the insurer posted a bigger loss on huge catastrophe losses and said it set aside more in reserves.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)