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Expedia ( EXPE ) gains after Q2 profit beat

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Elf Beauty ( ELF ) falls on dour FY sales, profit forecast

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Futures: S&P 500 up 0.1%, Nasdaq up 0.2%, Dow flat

(Updated at 6:45 a.m. ET/ 1045 GMT)

By Shubham Batra and Shashwat Chauhan

Aug 9 (Reuters) - Futures tied to the S&P 500 and the

Nasdaq edged higher on Friday on dovish signals from Federal

Reserve officials after a rally in the previous session

following a report of a resilient labor market.

Chipmaker Nvidia led the gains in megacap

technology stocks in premarket trading, with a 1.4% advance.

U.S. stocks jumped on Thursday after jobless claims last

week fell more than expected. July's dour jobs data had raised

fears of a slowdown in the United States.

"Investors seem to be extremely sensitive to labor-related

numbers and this is evident by the panic triggered by last

week's NFP report, as well as by the repricing (of interest rate

cuts) just after the jobless claims yesterday," Charalampos

Pissouros, senior investment analyst at forex broker XM, said in

a note.

"This confirms the narrative that good data is now good for

stocks, even if this translates into fewer basis points worth of

Fed rate cuts."

Global markets too have stabilized after a rout earlier this

week, triggered by a surge in yen as a surprise rate hike by the

Bank of Japan resulted in unwinding of currency carry trades.

The CBOE Volatility Index, Wall Street's "fear

gauge", declined to 23.62 points from a high of 65.73 at the

start of the week.

Still, all major indexes were set for weekly losses, with

both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq headed for a

fourth straight week of fall.

Money markets are evenly split between the Fed cutting rates

by 50-basis points or 25-basis points in September, according to

CME's FedWatch Tool.

Fed policymakers said on Thursday they were more confident

that inflation is cooling enough to allow interest-rate cuts

ahead, and will take their cues on the size and timing of those

cuts from the economic data.

Investors are now focusing on next week's readings on the

consumer prices and retail sales for July, which could provide

fresh evidence on chances of a soft landing for the American

economy.

At 06:45 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 4 points,

or 0.01%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 6 points, or 0.11% and

Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 41 points, or 0.22%.

Among individual stocks, Elf Beauty ( ELF ) fell 8.6% after

it forecast annual sales and profit below estimates, and said

it would raise product prices if Republican presidential

candidate Donald Trump comes to power and hikes tariffs on

imports from China.

Take-Two Interactive Software ( TTWO ) climbed 6.2% as it

expects net bookings to grow in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, as

the videogame publisher gears up for the launch of its

long-awaited "Grand Theft Auto VI" next year.

Expedia ( EXPE ) advanced 10.7% after the online travel

agency beat analysts' expectations for second-quarter profit,

helped by sustained demand for international travel.

The Trade Desk ( TTD ) jumped 6.5% after the ad tech firm

forecast third-quarter revenue above analysts' estimates,

signaling strong demand for automated ad-buying technologies

from connected TV companies.