US equity futures were lower before Friday's opening bell as traders digested the December jobs report.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 0.8%, S&P 500 futures fell 1%, and Nasdaq futures were down 1.2%.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 3.8% at $79.80 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 4% higher at $76.89 per barrel.

The December jobs report, released at 8:30 am ET, showed a 256,000 increase in nonfarm payrolls following a 212,000 gain in the prior month, compared with estimates compiled by Bloomberg for a 165,000 increase. The unemployment rate inched lower to 4.1% for the month from 4.2% previously, compared with estimates for no change.

Consumer sentiment, due at 10 am ET, is expected to remain unchanged in January at 74.0.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 1.1% lower, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.9% lower, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 1.3% lower. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 fell 0.5%, and Germany's DAX index gained 0.4% in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, Akoya Biosciences (AKYA) shares were up 42% pre-bell after the company said it agreed to be acquired by Quanterix (QTRX) in an all-stock deal.

On the losing side, ON Semiconductor (ON) shares fell 3.5% after Truist downgraded its rating on the stock to hold from buy.