June 06, 2013-Stocks Give Up Early Gains on Flat US Jobs Data

After pointing to a notably higher open earlier Thursday morning, stock futures have recently pulled back well off their best levels. The major index futures are currently pointing to a slightly higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by just 9 points. The pullback by the futures came following the release of a report from the Labor Department showing a modest drop in initial jobless claims in the week ended June 1st. The report said initial jobless claims dropped to 346,000, a decrease of 11,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 357,000. Economists had been expecting jobless claims to dip to 345,000 from the 354,000 originally reported for the previous week. With the report indicating an improvement in the labor market, the data may have added to recent concerns about the outlook for the Federal Reserve's stimulus program.