5 things to know before the stock market opens Friday

5 things to know before the stock market opens Friday

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

U.S. stock futures rose Friday ahead of the before-the-bell release of the government's January employment report. The S the S and the Nasdaq was up over 5.4%. All three stock benchmarks were tracking for their best weeks since November.

The Labor Department is set to issue its latest monthly jobs data at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect an addition of 50,000 nonfarm payrolls for January, which turned to be the deadliest month of the pandemic. The nation's unemployment rate is expected to remain unchanged at 6.7%. Stimulus checks boosted spending early in the month, and that may have helped employment. The economy saw monthly job losses in December for the first time since April as surging Covid-19 cases and increased virus mitigation efforts took their toll.

President Joe Biden speaks to staff of the US State Department during his first visit in Washington, DC, February 4, 2021.

The Senate passed a budget resolution early Friday as Democrats moved forward with the process of passing a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, based on President Joe Biden's blueprint, along party lines. Biden has said he hopes to strike a