Stock futures signal gains as eyes on payrolls

At 3:57 a.m., futures for the S&P 500 were up 0.11 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.17 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.32 percent.

The U.S. Labor Department's employment report is expected at 8:30 a.m. A survey of 75 economists forecast nonfarm payrolls dropped 65,000 after declining 125,000 in June. Private-sector hiring, considered a better gauge of health in the jobs market, is seen rising 90,000 after increasing 83,000 in June.

Crude oil prices were steady on Friday above $82, while the dollar was on the defensive near a 3-1/2 month low against a basket of currencies ahead of the payroll data.

European stocks were up 0.6 percent, just shy of a 3-month high hit in the previous session, as investors hoped for a strong jobs figure from the private sector that could continue to fuel the stock rally.

Kraft Foods Inc will be in the spotlight after it reported higher-than-expected quarterly profit and raised its target for cost savings from the acquisition of Cadbury, sending its shares up 2.9 percent in extended trading. Shares of Kraft traded in Frankfurt were up 2.2 percent.

Activision Blizzard Inc will also be in focus after it set a forecast for the current quarter that was below Wall Street's targets, raising fears about its just-released StarCraft II title and sending its shares down 6 percent in after-hours trading.

Saudi Arabia and BlackBerry maker Research In Motion are making progress in talks over access to the device's encrypted network, a source close to the negotiations said, and the kingdom had yet to carry out threats to cut its Messenger service early Friday morning.

BP finished pumping cement into its ruptured oil well in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday to seal off the source of the world's worst offshore spill, paving the way to permanently plug the blow-out later this month.

Shoe company Crocs Inc posted a second-quarter profit that beat Wall Street on lower costs and strong sales, especially in the Americas region, and forecast a strong third quarter, boosting shares 9 percent after market.

On the earnings front, investors awaited results from AIG , Pepco , Progress Energy , and The Washington Post .

U.S. stocks edged lower on Thursday as an unexpected rise in initial jobless claims and unimpressive July retail sales dimmed optimism ahead of the monthly payrolls report.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> slipped 5.45 points, or 0.05 percent, to 10,674.98. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> dropped 1.43 points, or 0.13 percent, to 1,125.81. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> lost 10.51 points, or 0.46 percent, to 2,293.06.

(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Will Waterman)