Economists expect the February employment report to show that the U.S. economy added 200,000 jobs during the month following a smaller than expected increase of 193,000 in January.

At the same time, the unemployment rate is expected to edge up to 4.8 percent from the four and a half year low of 4.7 percent that it set in January.

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS NEWS

Asian-Pacific benchmarks finished mixed on general recovery of the tech sector after the selloff earlier in the week and ahead of Japan CPI data. The Nikkei advanced in the morning but eventually ended down 0.3% as investors focused on economic data due out Friday. Shanghai Composite plunged 1.6%, South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.4%, while Australia’s All Ordinaries surged 1.1%, followed by Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, up 0.4%.

European stocks finished deeply in the red after a volatile session. Stocks were hurt by a lower start on Wall Street and hawkish interest rate comments after the ECB raised its key interest rate by a quarter of a point. The German DAX 30 plunged 1.4%, the French CAC 40 slipped 1%%, and London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.2%.

OIL, METALS, CURRENCIES

Crude oil prices climbed above $62 on global supply concerns, despite another rise in U.S. oil inventories. Light sweet crude April delivery gained 58 cents to $62.55 a barrel. Gasoline gained 1 cent to $1.6400. Heating oil added 2 cents to $1.7650. Natural gas rose 5 cents to $6.780 per 1,000 cubic feet. London Brent for April delivery added 81 cents to $63.26 a barrel.

European gold prices lost ground. In London gold declined to $564.80 bid per troy ounce, down from $565.70. In Zurich the precious metal fell to $564.80 from $564.90. In Hong Kong gold rose $1.40 to $564.19. Silver closed at $9.87, up from $9.83.

The U.S. dollar weakened against other major currencies. The euro traded at $1.1989, up from $1.1910. The dollar bought 115.99 yen, down from 116.07. The British pound was quoted at $1.7469, down from $1.7488.