Wall Street stock futures headed lower Thursday as traders digested reports on U.S. unemployment and retail sales.

Retail sales fell 0.1% in February, the U.S. Commerce Department said. However, sales climbed 0.7% excluding autos, better than expected and suggesting a possible bounce back by consumers.

U.S. claims for state unemployment benefits rebounded last week while total claims hit a record high, a government report showed, suggesting no relief to the severe erosion in labor markets.

Initial claims for jobless benefits rose 9,000 to 654,000 after seasonal adjustments in the week ended March 7, the U.S. Labor Department said. The four-week average rose for a seventh straight week, by 6,750 to 650,000. That’s the highest since October 1982.

Here at home, the Canadian dollar opened at US77.51¢, down 0.24 of a cent from Wednesday’s close.

In other financial news, accused financier Bernard Madoff will appear in a New York court Thursday morning where he is expected to plead guilty to swindling billions of dollars in one of the largest investment schemes in U.S. history.

In commodities news, light, sweet crude for April delivery rose 50¢ to US$42.83 a barrel in electronic premarket trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average dropped 2.4%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.6%.

In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 was down 1.5%, Germany’s DAX index was down two%, and France’s CAC-40 was down two%.

Toronto equities enjoyed a second consecutive day of gains on Wednesday, led by a rally in materials stocks.

The S&P/TSX composite index added 130.61 points, or 1.7%, to close at 8,011.02.

The materials group surged 5.1% on Wednesday, after two days of declines.

Gains among junior companies pushed the Venture composite index higher by 5.35 points, or 0.7%, to close at 823.90.

In New York, U.S. stocks also rose for a second day on Wednesday, but failed to maintain the momentum of Tuesday’s rally.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 3.91 points, or 0.1%, to close at 6,930.4.

The S&P 500 index climbed 1.76 points, or 0.2%, to 721.36.

The Nasdaq composite index advanced 13.36 points, or 1%, to finish at 1,371.64.

IE