US STOCKS-Wall St set for subdued open as investors assess key jobs data

By Johann M Cherian and Shashwat Chauhan

Dec 16 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were poised for a muted open on Tuesday as investors digested data signaling a cooling U.S. economy, bolstering expectations of further policy easing by the Federal Reserve next year.

Futures briefly turned positive after a Labor Department report showed job growth rebounded in November after nonfarm payrolls declined in October because of government spending cuts.

The unemployment rate was at 4.6% in November as the labor market weakened against the backdrop of economic uncertainty stemming from President Donald Trump's aggressive trade policy.

"When the unemployment rate moves up like this, it does fuel the potential for continued rate cuts. But as we've seen in the past, this is not a consistent trend," said Peter Andersen, founder of Andersen Capital Management.

The data offered investors greater clarity on the state of the labor market after a recent historic government shutdown deprived both investors and the Federal Reserve of official figures. Policymakers broadly acknowledged signs of a weakening jobs market when the central bank lowered interest rates last week.

Investors raised expectations for rate cuts next year, according to data compiled by LSEG, and are now pricing in at least 58 basis points of reductions, higher than the 25 bps signaled by the central bank last week.

On the inflation front, average earnings rose by a less-than-expected 0.1% on a monthly basis, while a separate delayed report showed retail sales in October were unchanged.

"We are now seeing some dissension in the Fed committee... and there's now considerable focus on who is going to lead the Fed. So right now the Fed is most distracted as it possibly could be, and I don't think that there will be any major decisions until all that resolves."

At 08:45 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis YMcv1 were down 23 points, or 0.05%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were down 6.5 points, or 0.10%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were down 43.75 points, or 0.17%.

Wall Street's main indexes ended lower in the previous session, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq .IXIC hitting a three-week low, as uncertainty over rate cuts and concerns about lofty tech valuations rattled investors, while they also weighed reports on developments around selecting a nominee to the Fed chair role.

Traders also rotated into sectors such as healthcare .SPXHC and banks .SPXBK, which have outperformed the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX on a quarterly basis.

The Russell 2000 index .RUT, tracking rate-sensitive small caps, along with the blue-chip Dow .DJI have also witnessed notable gains over the past three months.

B. Riley RILY.O shares jumped 27.2% in premarket trading, after the investment bank reported a profit for the second quarter, compared with a year-ago loss in an overdue quarterly filing.

Accenture ACN.N gained 3.2% after Morgan Stanley upgraded its rating on the IT consulting firm to "overweight" from "equal weight".

Humana HUM.N lost 3.6% after the health insurer announced leadership changes.

Separately, a Reuters report said Nasdaq NDAQ.O submitted paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to roll out round-the-clock trading of stocks, months after the New York Stock Exchange and Cboe Global Markets announced similar plans.