U.S. stock futures remained in positive territory Friday, even as the government announced that the U.S. economy lost over half a million jobs in January. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported nonfarm payrolls declined 598,000 in January. The December payrolls number was revised down to -577,000 (from -524,000), bringing the cumulative job loss in the last three months alone to 1.77 million. The unemployment rate jumped to 7.6% from 7.2%. Hourly earnings increased 0.3%, and are up 3.9% year-over-year which is a positive.
In other news, the Senate is set to resume deliberation over a nearly $900 billion stimulus bill. Separately, the Obama administration is expected to announce its strategy for reviving the banking system on Monday.
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