By Anna Hirtenstein 

U.S. stock futures wobbled Thursday ahead of economic data that will provide insights into the health of the services sector and the labor market.

Futures tied to the S&P 500 were relatively flat, a day after the broad-market index inched up to close at another all-time high. Nasdaq-100 futures rose 0.2%, pointing to muted gains in tech stocks after the opening bell.

Trading has been choppy this week as November's explosive rally in global stocks lost steam. The S&P 500 has repeatedly eked out fresh records on the back of investors' optimism that Covid-19 vaccines will accelerate the economic rebound next year. But rich valuations for stocks and elevated infection levels are tempering some of that cheer, leading to a more subdued move upward in recent days.

"Markets have been driving higher, seeing 2021 as the year economies will snap back," said Peter Dixon, an economist at Commerzbank. "There is concern a lot of the good news is already priced in, so I don't expect markets to go shooting into the stratosphere any time soon, but we could see a general grind higher."

Weekly jobless claims, seen as a proxy for layoffs, will be out at 8:30 a.m. ET. A recent increase in the number of workers seeking unemployment benefits is expected to have steadied last week. That suggests the labor market is still healing at a time when more states bring back restrictions to address a surge in new coronavirus cases.

The results of surveys of purchasing managers in the services sector, due to be released starting at 9:45 a.m. ET, will shed light on a part of the economy that has been badly hit by the pandemic. Investors are looking for signs of improved business sentiment among travel and finance companies as well as restaurants and bars, all of whose operations were disrupted by lockdown measures this year.

The number of Covid-19-related deaths reported in a day hit a record in the U.S., and newly reported infections were at their second highest, surpassing 200,000 for the second time in less than a week. Hospitalizations for coronavirus cases also surpassed 100,000 on Wednesday. The influx is widely expected to continue into the winter.

Oil prices were jittery on reports that OPEC and its allies are close to reaching a deal to increase production next month. Brent crude, the international benchmark, slid 0.4%. Energy ministers are scheduled to meet later on Thursday to formalize a deal.

In bond markets, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note edged down to 0.934%, from 0.948% on Wednesday.

The dollar continued to weaken against a basket of currencies for the third straight day, with the ICE U.S. Dollar Index sliding 0.2% and reaching its lowest since April 2018.

The currency's retreat is "partly due to liquidity from the Fed, which is still increasing -- but at a lower rate -- and higher risk sentiment, " said Shaniel Ramjee, a multiasset fund manager at Pictet Asset Management. "You can see capital flowing out of the U.S. as investors are wanting to take advantage of that higher yield in emerging markets."

Overseas, the pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 slipped 0.3%, and is on track for a muted drop this week. The gauge is lagging behind major U.S. stock indexes, and is over 10% below the record it hit in February.

Europe continues to battle another wave of Covid-19 infections, with Germany's leader Angela Merkel extending the country's partial lockdown into January. European regulators are expected to make a decision on approving the use of coronavirus-vaccine candidates at the end of the month.

Speedier moves by the U.K. and the U.S. will give those nations an edge, and could make their stocks more attractive, investors said. The British medicines' authority this week became the first major western regulator to sign off on a shot, and U.S. officials are scheduled to review test results next week.

"Europe seems to be the laggard when it comes to vaccine rollouts, it seems like it will take longer to approve," said Mr. Ramjee. "And logistically, Europe is more fragmented and might not be uniform."

In Asia, most major benchmarks ended the trading session higher.

The Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.2% by the close. American lawmakers on Wednesday approved legislation that could result in a trading ban on the shares of U.S.-listed Chinese companies over concerns about their audit quality.

Write to Anna Hirtenstein at anna.hirtenstein@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 03, 2020 05:42 ET (10:42 GMT)

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