(Reuters) - Stock futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Friday as investors braced for dismal monthly jobs figures and a rise in the unemployment rate. At 5 a.m. EST, futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 were down between 0.4 and 0.8 percent.
Highlights:
* The United States is expected to have shed 550,000 jobs in December, making it the worst single month of job losses in 34 years, while the unemployment rate is expected to rise to a 15-year high of 7.0 percent. If economists' forecasts for December prove correct, 2008 will be the biggest year of payroll losses since 1945.
* Adding to the gloom, a top Federal Reserve official said late on Thursday the U.S. recession looked to be longer and more severe than originally thought, but there were signs the economy would improve in the second half of 2009.
"It appears the economy contracted quite significantly in the final quarter of 2008 and may continue contracting over at least the first half of 2009. We are seeing businesses retrenching and unemployment rising," Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren told the Massachusetts Mortgage Bankers Association's Annual Meeting.
"As a result, this recession looks to be longer and more severe than originally forecast. Still, there are indications that the second half of the year will show improvement," he said.
Companies reporting earnings on Friday include KB Home
* Most U.S. stocks rose on Thursday after news that Citigroup Inc
* The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> ended down 27.24 points, or 0.31 percent, to 8,742.46. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was up 3.08 points, or 0.34 percent, to 909.73. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 17.95 points, or 1.12 percent, to 1,617.01.
(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Rupert Winchester)
