Nasdaq, S&P 500 Futures Dip As Markets Brace For May Jobs Report: Why NVDA, LULU, SPCE, CELH, MRLN, KEEL Are In Focus

• Markets are in wait-and-watch mode ahead of May’s nonfarm payrolls report, a key test for the economy and the Federal Reserve’s rate outlook. 
• Nvidia reportedly faces fresh scrutiny over China-related export controls, while Anthropic's warning about increasingly autonomous AI systems reignited safety concerns. 
• Crypto markets remained under pressure, with Bitcoin posting its longest losing streak since August. 

U.S. stock futures were lower early Friday with investors gearing up for a critical May nonfarm payrolls report expected to show a significant hiring slowdown. 

Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East lingered despite a fragile U.S.-Iran ceasefire, and President Donald Trump reiterated that the talks were in the final stages. Trump stated he would be "honored" to meet Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei if it meant securing a permanent deal to end a conflict now dragging into its fourth month. 

On the other hand, Anthropic rattled tech circles by calling for a global pause on advanced AI development, warning that models are nearing autonomous "self-evolution." 

As of 4:00 a.m. ET on Friday: Nasdaq futures fell 1.1%, S&P 500 futures were down 0.6%, Dow futures were flat, while Russell 2000 futures declined 0.7%.

Retail sentiment toward the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 Index, remained in ‘bullish’ territory, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) ETF, which tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index, has remained ‘neutral’.

Trending Stocks To Watch

Nvidia (NVDA): CEO Jensen Huang reportedly certified memory giants SK Hynix, Samsung, and Micron for HBM4 production to fuel its next-gen "Vera Rubin" chip. In other developments, Senator Elizabeth Warren has invited Huang to testify on June 11 regarding China operations and export controls amid reported global loopholes. 

Alphabet (GOOGL): A news report reveals fresh job cuts at Google’s Cloud unit over the past two weeks.

Lululemon (LULU) stock fell 11% in early premarket trade after the athletic apparel retailer slashed its full-year 2026 revenue guidance, blaming product launch misses and Middle East disruptions. This has investors concerned ahead of the transition to a new CEO in September. 

SpaceX (SPCX): Remains in the spotlight after S&P Dow Jones Indices refused to alter its rules to fast-track megacap IPOs into its indices, cementing a strict 12-month exchange trading requirement before consideration. 

Other space stocks such as AST Spacemobile (ASTS), Intuitive Machines (LUNR) and Rocket Lab (RKLB) fell 2% in early premarket trade. Virgin Galactic (SPCE), however, bucked the trend with a 2% gain. 

Celsius Holdings (CELH) stock rebounded from a three-month low after brokerage firms, including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America, remained bullish despite regulatory action around its Alani Nu energy drink brand. 

Innodata (INOD) fell 2% in early premarket trade. However, Wedbush is bullish on the stock and has raised its price target, believing the company’s AI growth runway has a long way to go. 

Merlin Inc. (MRLN): Stock soared 40% in early premarket after successfully wrapping up its critical design review for autonomous planes. 

Keel Infrastructure (KEEL) stock cracked 9% in early premarket trading after the digital and energy infrastructure company announced a $350 million offering of convertible senior notes, sparking dilution concerns. 

Alibaba Group (BABA): Stock slipped marginally in early premarket even as Cathie Wood's ARK Investment aggressively bought 245.3K shares on Thursday. 

Other tickers trending on Stocktwits at the time of writing included Bitmine Immersion (BMNR), Candel Therapeutics (CADL), and Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA).

Other Catalysts To Watch

On the economic front, investors are tracking the release of the official non-farm payrolls report for May at 8:30 am ET. 

On earnings radar, watch out for quarterly reports from Tuniu (TOUR), G Iii Apparel Group Ltd (GIII), Abm Industries Inc (ABM), Here Group (HERE), and  Confluent Inc (CFLT), among others, today.

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