07:23 AM EDT, 09/06/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The benchmark US stock measures were trending downwards before Friday's open as investors await the national employment situation report for August.

Standard & Poor's 500 fell 0.7%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 0.3% and the Nasdaq dropped 1.2% in premarket activity. The majority of Asian exchanges were pointing lower while European bourses were tracking in the red.

The jobs report for last month is scheduled for an 8:30 am ET release. Government data are expected to show nonfarm payroll growth of 165,000 in August, which would mark an acceleration from the 114,000 gain reported the month before, according to a consensus compiled by Bloomberg.

Friday's economic calendar also has the weekly Baker Hughes domestic oil-and-gas rig count at 1 pm. Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams is set to speak at 8:45 am, while Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller speaks at 11 am.

Shares of Broadcom ( AVGO ) slipped 8.9% pre-bell as the chipmaker's fiscal fourth-quarter revenue outlook was just shy of market expectations. UiPath ( PATH ) climbed 9.5% as the company lifted its full-year revenue guidance. DocuSign ( DOCU ) fell 2.1% despite the company slightly increasing its full-year revenue outlook.

BRP (DOOO), ABM Industries ( ABM ) and Brady (BRC) report their latest financial results before the bell, among others.

Before the open, bitcoin edged up 0.1% to $56,123, West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.2% to $69.28 per barrel, yields on 10-year Treasuries decreased 3.6 basis points to nearly 3.7% and gold ticked up 0.2% to $2,548 an ounce.