Morning Briefing: 10 Things You Should Know

Political turmoil continues in Egypt, but stock futures are upbeat ahead of today's jobs report.
By Carlton Wilkinson ,

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Here are 10 things you should know for Friday, July 5:

1. The

economic calendar in the U.S. Friday

Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the monthly employment situation at 8:30 a.m. ET as economists polled by

Thomson Reuters

anticipate nonfarm payrolls to add 165,000 jobs.

Last month's report showed payrolls add 175,000.

2. U.S. stock futures were moving higher. Futures for the

S&P 500

were gaining 14 points, or 0.89%, to 1623.25. Futures for the

Dow Jones Industrial Average

were boosting 134 points, or 0.9%, to 15,050.

Nasdaq

futures were rising 28 points, or 0.95% to 2964.50.

3. The U.S. is reacting cautiously to the overthrow of Egypt's elected President Mohammed Morsi Wednesday. President Obama issued a statement Thursday calling for a quick, peaceful return to democracy and saying the administration was monitoring the situation and in touch with leadership in Egypt and the region.

4. The European Central Bank has taken the unusual step of committing to keep interest rates low "for an extended period of time." The refinancing rate for the 17 European Union countries that use the euro was left unchanged Thursday at 0.5%.

5.

Samsung Electronics

was facing further analyst downgrades Friday as the world's largest smart-phone manufacturer missed second-quarter earnings expectations, largely on less-than-expected sales of its flagship Galaxy S4 handset.

6. Gold prices fell in the London session Friday as the dollar strengthened. Gold remains up 2.7% for the week.

7. After a days long political crisis, Portugal's Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho has said he had reached an agreement for the formation of a coalition to keep his government from collapsing. Widespread dissatisfaction with austerity measures have contributed to the fractures among the country's leadership.

8. Standard and Poor's downgraded

Nokia's

(NOK) - Get Report

credit rating, following the company's decision to buy out

Siemens

stake in a joint venture

Nokia Siemens Networks

for $2.2 billion.

9. The International Monetary Fund has agreed to a $5.3 billion loan for Pakistan to help stabilize the country's economy. The government offered a "very robust reform" agenda, according to

Bloomberg

reports.

10. An accident at a holiday fireworks display in Simi Valley outside of Los Angeles injured at least 28 people, according to media reports.

-- Written by Carlton Wilkinson

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