closest to the pin at close 04/06/09, page-141

NEW YORK, June 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures
pointed to a higher open on Friday as investors awaited key
monthly data on the labor market.

* U.S. May non-farm payrolls were forecast to fall by
520,000, a slowing from the decline of 539,000 in April,
although the previous month's number could be revised. The U.S.
unemployment rate is seen rising to 9.2 percent in May from 8.9
percent in April, according to Reuters poll.

* "This morning's jobs number is going to be critical in
terms of giving us a picture of what's going on," said Paul
Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist at Windham Financial
Services in Charlotte, Vermont.

"Today's number is either going to confirm that the numbers are improving, or at least not getting any worse. But if that
number comes in worse than expected, and if on top of that
you've got a worse-than-expected revision to the previous
month's number, then the market is not going to look at that
favorably."

* Global miner Rio Tinto rejected $19.5
billion in funding from China on Friday in favor of a
cost-saving iron ore joint venture with rival BHP Billiton
and a share sale to cut debt. [ID:nSYD73514] Aluminum
producer Alcoa Inc rose 2.3 percent to $10.94 in
premarket trade.

* S&P 500 futures rose 5 points and were above fair
value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account
interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 36
points, while Nasdaq 100 futures gained 5.75 points.

* Apple Inc shares rose 2.1 percent to $146.70after the Wall Street Journal reported that Chief Executive
Steve Jobs is on track to return to the company from a medical
leave after being treated for a rare type of pancreatic cancer.
[ID:nL584925]

* The Journal also reported the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corp is aiming to shake up Citigroup Inc's top management, including replacing CEO Vikram Pandit, citing
people familiar with the matter. [ID:nSP443945] Citigroup
shares added 0.8 percent to $3.60 in premarket trade.

* A U.S. federal appeals court will hear arguments on
Friday that the sale of Chrysler LLC to a group including
Italian carmaker Fiat SpA and the U.S. government
violates longstanding bankruptcy law and should not be allowed
to go forward. [ID:nN04235639] The ruling will have
implications for General Motors Corp , which filed
for bankruptcy on June 1.

* European equities rose Friday, with Rio Tinto leading
miners higher after scrapping the Chinalco tie-up, and banks
tracked gains for the sector on Wall Street. [ID:nL5264493]

* Asian shares, oil and higher-yielding currencies rose as
positive signals from the latest U.S. weekly job data sparked
tentative optimism ahead of the Friday employment report.
[ID:nT363435]

* U.S. shares climbed on Thursday as a brokerage's upbeat
view on U.S. banks sparked a runup in financials, while surging
prices in oil and other commodities boosted natural resource
companies on hopes the economic slump was waning.

* The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 74.96
points, or 0.86 percent, to 8,750.24. The Standard & Poor's 500
Index <.SPX> climbed 10.70 points, or 1.15 percent, to 942.46.
The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> rose 24.10 points, or 1.32
percent, to 1,850.02.