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The Before the Bell report is constantly updated to reflect the latest news developments and market moves in the premarket. Check back later for updates.

U.S. and Canadian stock futures have extended early morning gains on the release of U.S. non-farm payrolls data, which came in just a tad below consensus expectations. S&P 500 and Dow futures are now up more than 0.4 per cent, double the advance from prior to the 830 a.m. (ET) data.

Meanwhile, the loonie has spiked more than half a cent on a stronger-than-expected Canadian employment report, with the Canadian currency now trading comfortably above 91 cents (U.S.).

Much of today's trading direction had hinged on the U.S. jobs report, which is crucial in determining the timing of the tapering of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program and when it may start hiking interest rates. The consensus was looking for 200,000 net new jobs in March, higher than the 175,000 in February when severe winter weather may have discouraged the hunt the jobs. The actual number came in at 192,000, with the jobless rate holding steady at 6.7 per cent as more people entered the workforce in search of jobs.

Some banks and traders this morning had speculated the number for March could come in higher, with whispers in the market putting gains in the 220,000 to 240,000 range.

While that failed to materialize, stock markets are taking the actual number in stride. A stronger-than-expected jobs number would have meant the economy is healing and starting to grow more rapidly - good news for corporate profits. But it also keeps the Fed on track to curtail its monthly bond-buying purchases by a further $10-billion every month and hike rates sooner rather than later. The current thinking is that a rate hike could come a year from now, although Fed chair Janet Yellen made it clear this week she's deeply concerned with the sluggish job market and said the Fed is going to be accommodative for a long time.

Now, here's a closer look at what's going on this morning and what's to come.

MARKETS:

Equities:

Futures: S&P 500 +0.46 per cent; Dow +0.42 per cent; Nasdaq +0.60 per cent; S&P Toronto +0.04 per cent

Hong Kong's Hang Seng -0.24 per cent

Shanghai composite index +0.75 per cent

Japan's Nikkei -0.05 per cent

London's FTSE 100 +0.55 per cent

Germany's DAX +0.53 per cent

France's CAC 40 +0.51 per cent

Commodities:

WTI crude oil (Nymex May) +1.00 per cent at $101.29 (U.S.) a barrel

Gold (Comex Jun) +1.13 per cent at $1,299.20 (U.S.) an ounce

Copper (Comex May) +0.99 per cent at $3.06 (U.S.) a pound

Currencies:

Canadian dollar at 91.21 (U.S.), up 0.0059

U.S. dollar index down 0.07 at 80.39

Bonds:

U.S. 10-year Treasury yield 2.77 per cent, down 0.04

ECONOMIC INDICATORS:

U.S. non-farm payrolls rose by a net 192,000 jobs in March, close to the consensus call of 200,000. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.7 per cent, which was unchanged from February and a bit higher than the 6.6 per cent Street forecast, as more people joined the labour force looking for work. There was an upward revision in jobs totaling 37,000 to the prior two months.

Canada created 42,900 net jobs in March, more than the Street consensus of 25,000 new jobs. The unemployment rate was 6.9 per cent, lower than the 7 per cent forecast by economists, and the lowest level in four months. Most of the gains came from the public sector and in part-time jobs.

STOCKS TO WATCH:

Earnings today include CarMax.

ANALYST ACTIONS:

Canaccord Genuity upgraded Eldorado Gold to "buy" from "hold" and cut its price target to $8.50 (Canadian) from $9.

Desjardins Securities upgraded Kirkland Lake Gold to "hold" from "sell" and kept a $3.75 (Canadian) price target, citing recent share price depreciation.

THIS MORNING'S TOP INVESTING LINKS:

How to handle a big gain.

Will last year's winners be this year's losers?

Nobel Prize winner and Yale economist Robert Shiller is warning stock pickers to be realistic.

Looking for signs of a bubble? Watch Sotheby's stock.

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For instant headlines on breaking economic and corporate news in the premarket, follow Darcy Keith on Twitter at @eyeonequities.

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