U.S. stock futures edged up Thursday ahead of new data on the trade deficit and unemployment claims that could provide fresh insights into the pace of the economic recovery.

Futures tied to the S&P 500 ticked up 0.3%, pointing to modest gains at the opening bell after the broad market index closed down 0.5% on Wednesday. Nasdaq-100 futures also gained 0.3%, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advanced 0.2%.

The major stock indexes have wobbled in recent days amid concerns that the rebound may be slowing and the Delta variant of Covid-19 is leading to a surge in cases. Fresh data Wednesday showed that the private sector added half as many jobs in July as economists expected. Despite the volatility, the S&P 500 is still hovering near its all-time high, boosted by strong quarterly results from the biggest businesses.

“We’re pretty positive, we think that the earnings data is very strong,” said Caroline Simmons, U.K. chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management. Equity markets can continue to climb by 5% to 10% over the next year, she said.

The continued signs of weakness in the labor market also suggests that the Federal Reserve will hold off on scaling back its easy money policies for now, Ms. Simmons added.

“Unemployment is higher than it was pre-pandemic, and central banks feel there is still excess capacity in the labor market,” Ms. Simmons said. “When it comes to it, we believe that monetary tightening will be relatively gradual, well flagged, and actually, equities will probably be able to absorb it.”

In bond markets, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note edged up to 1.184% from 1.183% on Wednesday.

In premarket trading, Uber dropped nearly 4% after the company reported a bigger loss than analysts expected and said it had to spend on incentives for drivers amid a shortage. Online marketplace Etsy slumped over 12% after its results showed a slowdown in buyer growth. Travel giant Booking rose more than 3% after its quarterly revenue more than tripled.

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Novavax, Beyond Meat and American International Group are scheduled to post earnings after markets close.

Data on the U.S. trade balance for June is due at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect the trade deficit to have widened after preliminary figures showed record goods imports with Americans buying more from overseas.

Data on jobless claims, seen as a proxy for layoffs, are also set to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The figures released last week showed a moderate decline in claims, but they remain in a range that is nearly double the pre-pandemic average.

A trader worked on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday.

Photo: andrew kelly/Reuters

Overseas, the pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 added 0.3%. The Bank of England’s latest monetary policy decision, economic forecasts and minutes are due at 7 a.m. ET. Investors expect policies to remain on hold and are awaiting signals on when the central bank could begin to pull back on stimulus measures.

“We’ll be looking for signs, anything from the BOE that adds to the hawkishness in the developed-market central bank narrative,” said Arun Sai, multiasset strategist at Pictet Asset Management. Earlier this week, the Reserve Bank of Australia said it would go ahead with its plan to taper its bond-buying program despite an uptick in Covid-19 cases.

Among European equities, Germany’s Siemens rose over 3% after raising its full-year outlook and reporting revenue that beat analysts’ expectations. Bayer slipped 5% after it posted a net loss and said earnings continued to be affected by litigation costs for its Roundup weedkiller. Jet engine maker Rolls Royce climbed more than 4% after it swung to a pretax profit in the first half of the year.

The Shanghai Composite Index slid 0.3% by the close of trading, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 0.8%. Chinese stocks slipped due to concerns about restrictions on movement amid new outbreaks of Covid-19, according to analysts at Commerzbank.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.5% by the end of the trading session in Tokyo.

Write to Anna Hirtenstein at anna.hirtenstein@wsj.com