U.S. employers dialed back their planned job cuts in September, especially in the warehousing sector, but workforce reduction intentions were higher on a year-to-date basis amid continued cuts in the technology and retail industries, according to a report released on Thursday.

Online sales during the crucial U.S. holiday season are expected to rise 4.8% from a year earlier as retailers go all out to woo inflation-hit consumers with even bigger discounts and promotions, a report from Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE) Analytics showed on Thursday.

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed more than expected in August as exports increased solidly, likely positioning trade to support economic growth in the third quarter.

 A wild week in Treasury markets is set to culminate with the U.S. payrolls report on Friday, and some investors believe benign data could bring calm after a selloff pushed government bonds to pre-financial crisis levels.

Crude prices edged higher on Friday amid deep weekly losses left by one of the oil market’s worst tumbles for the year.

The dollar dipped on Friday but traders were largely keeping to the sidelines in both the currency and U.S. Treasury markets as they looked to U.S. nonfarm payrolls data later in the day for potential catalysts.