09:09 AM EDT, 11/01/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US stocks look set to open higher in Friday's trading session as investors analyze key inflation and manufacturing data released earlier in the morning.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.54%, S&P 500 futures gained 0.53%, and Nasdaq futures were rising 0.54%.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmarks Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate crude up 1.80% and 1.95% respectively.

The unemployment rate for October remained unchanged at 4.1%, meeting analyst forecasts, while non-farm payrolls added only 12,000 in October, far below the Bloomberg estimate of 106,000.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday it is likely that in some industries payroll employment estimates were affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. However, it also said it is "not possible to quantify the net effect on the over-the-month change in national employment."

The BLS also said manufacturing employment decreased by 46,000 in October, which includes a decline of 44,000 in transportation equipment manufacturing "that was largely due to strike activity."

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei tumbled 2.63%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.93%, and China's Shanghai Composite was down 0.24%. Meanwhile in Europe's early afternoon session, the UK's FTSE 100 was moving nearly 1% higher, while Germany's DAX and France's CAC were up 0.61% and 0.78% respectively.

In equities, shares of Globalstar ( GSAT ) jumped 43% after it said in a regulatory filing Friday it has updated its service agreements with Apple (AAPL) to expand its mobile satellite services network. Theriva Biologics ( TOVX ) shares surged 40% after it said late Thursday that it has been named as one of five finalists for Merck's (MRK) Advance Biotech Grant. Shares of Athira Pharma (ATHA) climbed 34% after losing about 5% on Thursday. Pro-Dex ( PDEX ) shares climbed 27% after it reported late Thursday that it swung to a profit in fiscal Q1. And shares of Atlassian ( TEAM ) rose 24% after it reported fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue that topped analyst forecasts.

On the losing side, shares of ESSA Pharma ( EPIX ) plummeted 69% after it said it is terminating a phase 2 trial evaluating the combination of masofaniten and enzalutamide in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer compared with enzalutamide alone. Lexicon Pharmaceuticals ( LXRX ) shares plunged 40% after it said late Thursday that the US Food and Drug Administration denied a new drug application for Zynquista to treat glycemic control in adults with type 1 diabetes and chronic kidney disease. The FDA said that the benefits of Zynquista do not outweigh the risks in adults. Shares of Advent Technologies ( ADN ) fell 20% after a 34% gain on Thursday. CIMG's ( IMG ) stock dropped 17%, eating into its 32% gain on Thursday. And shares of Visionary Holdings ( GV ) were down 13%, adding to a 5% loss the previous session.