Here comes the jobs report ...

At 8:30 a.m. ET, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will release the jobs report for August.

Economists estimate that the US economy added 217,000 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate fell to 5.2% from 5.3%.

They expect to see some wage growth, with hourly earnings up 0.2% month-over-month, and 2.1% higher compared to a year ago.

As we outlined on Thursday, this report will hugely influence market expectations for whether the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its meeting later this month. A strong report will add to the pile of data we've recently received that prove the economy is advancing at a steady pace - probably steady enough to warrant the first rate increase in a decade.

Also, even though inflation is still off the Fed's 2% target, wage growth will boost confidence that it is on its way there.

Goldman Sachs economists are hinging their bullish expectations on the availability of jobs; for most of this year, the JOLTS report has shown that openings exceed the number of hires.

Other secondary labor market indicators are pointing to strong gains in September, including initial jobless claims, and the employment components of ISM manufacturing indexes.

However, history may repeat itself. Deutsche Bank's Joe Lavorgna has pointed out that in August, job gains have missed consensus forecasts in 21 out of the last 27 years. He's forecasting a more modest payroll print of 170,000.

Ultimately, it's possible that the Fed looks past the strong data and skips a hike this month, given the recent volatility in stocks and concerns about the impact of slowing foreign economies on the US.

Ahead of the report, stock futures were sliding after a virtually flat close on Thursday.

We'll be live with updates as soon as the data cross.