US STOCKS-Wall St set for record open as stimulus hopes outweigh dire jobs report

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* Nonfarm payrolls fall in December
* Moderna jumps on UK nod to COVID-19 vaccine
* Micron jumps on upbeat second-quarter revenue forecast
* Futures up: Dow 0.18%, S&P 0.22%, Nasdaq 0.45%

(Adds comment; updates share prices)
By Devik Jain
Jan 8 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were set to
scale new highs on Friday, as hopes of more economic stimulus to
ride out a pandemic-led downturn eclipsed concerns over a
significant loss of pace in labor market recovery.
The U.S. government's employment report showed the economy
shed jobs for the first time in eight months in December as the
country buckled under an onslaught of COVID-19 infections.
However, with a backstop of nearly $900 billion in stimulus
approved by the government last week and expectations of a
bigger fiscal package and infrastructure spending under
President-elect Joe Biden's administration, Wall Street's main
indexes have surged to all-time highs.
"The fact that there is a optimism on a vaccine rollout plan
and the potential for more relief aid to come will help to
offset any risks that we're seeing in softening economic data in
the short-term," said Brian Vendig, president and managing
executive at MJP Wealth Advisors in Westport, Connecticut.
The S&P 500 closed above 3,800 points for the first time on
Thursday, while the Dow and the Nasdaq are on track for fourth
straight weekly gains.
Some Wall Street bankers, however, expect a pull back in the
near-term as exuberance from unprecedented monetary and fiscal
stimulus have led to "frothy" asset prices. Market participants looked past mounting calls among
congressional Democrats for impeaching President Donald Trump
for a second time, two days after his false claims of election
fraud helped encourage a mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol.
At 08:34 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were up 55 points, or
0.18%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were up 8.5 points, or 0.22%, and
Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 58 points, or 0.45%.
Moderna Inc MRNA.O added 1.6% in premarket trading after
Britain's medical regulator approved the drugmaker's COVID-19
vaccine for use and agreed to purchase an additional 10 million
doses of the shot. Among individual stocks, Micron Technology Inc MU.O jumped
4% after the chipmaker forecast second-quarter revenue above
estimates as a global shift to remote work and a recent uptick
in 5G smartphone adoption drove demand for its chips.
U.S.-listed shares of Baidu Inc BIDU.O gained 8% on plans
to form a company to make smart electric vehicles, according to
two sources familiar with the matter.