US STOCKS-S&P 500 futures flat as vaccine cheer offsets high jobless claims

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* Jobless claims fall after rising for two straight weeks
* Goldman Sachs raises rating on Tesla to "buy"
* 3M ticks higher on 2,900 jobs cut news
* Futures: Dow and S&P flat, Nasdaq up 0.2%

(Adds comments, updates prices)
By Shriya Ramakrishnan and Medha Singh
Dec 3 (Reuters) - Futures tracking the S&P 500 and the Dow
hovered near record highs on Thursday as hopes of a swift
COVID-19 vaccine-driven recovery and economic stimulus eased
immediate worries about rising coronavirus cases and high
unemployment.
Nasdaq futures NQcv1 rose 0.2% as heavyweight Tesla Inc
TSLA.O gained 4.5% premarket after Goldman Sachs upgraded the
stock to "buy" from "neutral" in the run-up to the electric-car
maker's addition to the S&P 500. The Labor Department's report showed initial claims for
jobless benefits decreased to a seasonally adjusted 712,000 for
the week ended Nov. 28. Economists polled by Reuters had
forecast 775,000 applications for the latest week.
The U.S. labor market's recovery has been undermined by a
surge in COVID-19 infections and fresh business restrictions,
which have led to a spike in job losses and added pressure on
policy makers for a fresh relief package.
Later in the day, investors will focus on surveys on the
services sector, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the
U.S. economy. The government's closely watched monthly
employment report is expected on Friday.
"Investors are unfazed about riding through the winter virus
storm before reaching the end of the tunnel ... markets believe
they can always count on more stimulus to smoothen the ride,"
said Raffi Boyadjian, senior investment analyst at online broker
XM.
While Republicans and Democrats in Congress remained unable
to smooth out differences over the next coronavirus relief
package, there were early signs that a $908 billion bipartisan
proposal could be gaining traction as a negotiating tool.
Congress also faces a Dec. 11 deadline to pass a $1.4
trillion budget or risk a shutdown of the government.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases have continued to rise. The mayor
of Los Angeles warned the city was nearing "a devastating
tipping point" and ordered residents to stay in their homes in
new lockdown measures. But progress in developing a working COVID-19 vaccine before
the end of the year has helped investors look past the surge in
infections, pushing the S&P 500 .SPX to a record closing high
on Wednesday.
The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention warned on Wednesday the country will face the
grimmest health crisis yet over the next few months, before
vaccines become widely available. At 08:38 a.m. EST, Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were up 10 points,
or 0.03% and S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were down 1.5 points, or
0.04%.
Industrial conglomerate 3M Co's MMM.N shares gained 0.7%
as the company unveiled plans to cut about 2,900 jobs globally
and scale back on investments in slower-growing markets as part
of a restructuring. Boeing Co BA.N added 1.7% a day after its 737 MAX staged
its first post-grounding flight with media on board.
Cloud-security provider Zscaler Inc ZS.O advanced 11% as
it reported better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and
adjusted profit. Waddell & Reed Financial WDR.N surged 48%, extending gains
from the previous session after Australia's Macquarie Group
MQG.AX announced a deal to buy the wealth manager for $1.7
billion.