Stocks ready to slide
Investors digest government's latest reading on the battered U.S. labor market.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks were poised to open lower Thursday, the end of a holiday-shortened week, after the release of the government's monthly jobs report.
At 8:59 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures were lower.
Futures measure current index values against the perceived future performance. They can be used as a forecast for trading after the bell, though they're not always an accurate harbinger.
On Wednesday, Wall Street started the third quarter with a modest rally. Reports on manufacturing and housing indicated that the pace of the recession is slowing.
All financial markets are closed Friday for the Independence Day holiday.
Economic reports: The June employment report from the Labor Department showed a net loss of 467,000 jobs in June, compared with a revised loss of 322,000 jobs in May.
That's first time in four months that the number of jobs lost rose from the prior month, and the cuts were far worse than the forecast of 365,000 from economists surveyed by Briefing.com.
The unemployment rate, generated by a separate survey, rose for the ninth straight month, climbing to 9.5% from 9.4%. Economists expected the rate to hit 9.6%.
The government said initial claims fell to 614,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 630,000, measuring the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time. Economists expected 615,000 new claims.
After the start of trading, the Commerce Department will release the May factory orders report. Orders are expected to have risen 0.9% after climbing 0.7% in April.
General Motors: Bankruptcy court hearings are expected to continue Thursday regarding the automaker GM (GMGMQ) and its plans to form a new company. The deal won't go through without a decision from Judge Robert Gerber of U.S. bankruptcy court in New York.
Lawyers representing dissenters, including unsecured bondholders as well as mechanics who have filed asbestos-related claims against the company, oppose the deal in its current form because they don't want to get left out of the bankruptcy process.
World markets: Asian markets ended lower Thursday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index down 0.6%. European markets were down more than 1% in midday trading.
Oil and money: The price of oil fell $1.08 to $68.23 a barrel. The dollar was higher against major currencies. 
