Futures climb on Apple earnings cheer, jobs report on tap

U.S. stock index futures rose on Friday as upbeat results from Apple underscored resilience in corporate earnings despite a slowing U.S. economy, while investors awaited a monthly employment report to gauge the outlook for interest rates.

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) gained 2.7% in premarket trading on better-than-expected results, helped by strong iPhone sales and notable inroads in India and other newer markets.

The company’s executives also noted that gross profit margins for the current quarter would be better than forecast on improving supply-chain issues.

“Thanks to their (Apple and Microsoft) sizeable balance sheets, and falling yields, big tech companies remain a refuge for equity investors, which certainly explains why the S&P 500 has been relatively resilient to the bank turmoil,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank, said.

“What’s risky is that if winds change direction for Big Tech, we could rapidly see gains in S&P 500 crumble.”

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