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U.S. futures were trading modestly lower following surprisingly strong jobs data from the federal government. Equities markets are closed for Good Friday, but futures markets were trading into Friday morning, albeit quietly. Futures for S&P 500 dipped 0.3% early Friday, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2% and Nasdaq futures were down 0.4%. American employers added a surprisingly strong 178,000 new jobs last month, rebounding from a dismal February that saw 133,000 job losses. Markets in Asia mostly rose, while European markets were also closed for Good Friday.

President Donald Trump claims that the United States has, in his words, “completely decimated” Iran. But the situation appears more complex, especially with two U.S. warplanes just having gone down in separate incidents during the war. Trump has struggled to respond to Iran's actions such as effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz that's disrupted global oil supplies. His go-it-alone approach has faced criticism from traditional American allies reluctant to support a war they didn't endorse. At home, some Republicans emphasize the importance of maintaining strong international relationships and are taking issue with Trump's unilateral strategy.

A federal judge has halted efforts by the Trump administration to collect data that proves higher education institutions aren’t considering race in admissions. The ruling granting the preliminary injunction follows a lawsuit filed last month by a coalition of 17 Democratic state attorneys general. President Donald Trump ordered the new policy in August after he raised concerns that colleges and universities were using personal statements and other proxies to consider race. The states argue the data collection effort threats student privacy and could lead to baseless investigations of colleges and universities. The federal judge said the federal government likely has the authority to collect the data, but the demand was rolled out to universities in a “rushed and chaotic” manner.