Stock futures mixed ahead of busy data week

NEW YORK (AP) — Stock futures traded in a narrow range today as investors were cautious entering a week that provides the latest report on the jobs market.

A separate report that showed consumer spending crept higher last month had little affect on trading, even though its widely believed that shoppers returning to stores would help the economy. Investors are cautious today because they are more concerned with the Labor Department’s monthly employment report due out at the end of the week. The jobs report is considered the most important economic data of the month, and analysts expect spending growth will remain sluggish as new jobs remain scarce.

Employment data has become vital for traders recently because jobs growth is considered the best way the recovery can get back on track and grow consistently. Signs of a slowdown in growth has plagued the market for more than a month. Investors are unsure if companies will be able to keep up strong earnings growth if the recovery runs out of steam or falls back into recession.

Waning confidence in the economy and about employment have kept shoppers out of stores, which further adds to a slowdown in the recovery.