Stock futures edge higher, European and Asian indexes rise

Investors mull economic growth and impact of Covid-19 Delta variant

U.S. stock futures crept up Friday and Asian and European equity indexes also gained.

Futures on the S&P 500 rose 0.1% and futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2%. Changes in futures don’t necessarily predict moves after the opening bell. U.S. stocks fell Thursday as investors weighed mixed signals in the latest economic data and a stock-market pullback in China.

Europe stocks advanced Friday for a two-session winning streak. The Stoxx Europe 600 climbed 0.7% in morning trade. Industrials and energy sectors led gains while the materials sector lost ground. 

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Fred DeMarco, right, works with fellow traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, Feb. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

The U.K.’s FTSE 100 added 0.7%. Other stock in Europe also mostly climbed as France’s CAC 40 added 0.8% and the FTSE 250 rose 0.3%. Germany’s DAX was largely flat.

Stocks in Asia mostly climbed, as Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.3% after falling as much as 0.9% earlier, and China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite rose 0.2% after falling as much as 1% during the session. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index climbed 0.6%.

In commodities, Brent crude fell 0.3% to $75.46 a barrel. Gold strengthened 0.4% to $1,763.30 a troy ounce.

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Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields declined to 1.334% from 1.335%. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. German 10-year bund yields were up to minus 0.288% from minus 0.300% and the U.K. 10-year gilts yield gained to 0.728% from 0.727%.

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