Investing.com – U.S. futures pointed to a higher open on Thursday ahead of a flurry of economic data and earnings reports.
The S&P 500 futures increased eight points or 0.31% as of 6:50 AM ET (11:50 AM GMT) while Dow futures rose 52 points or 0.22%. Meanwhile tech heavy Nasdaq 100 futures was up 25 points or 0.41%.
The top gainers in pre-market trading included Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO), which surged 6.42% after its earnings results were higher than expected and Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (NYSE:BUD), which rose 1.47%. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) increased 0.78% before the morning bell while Nokia (HE:NOKIA) Corp ADR was up 1.24%.
Meanwhile toymaker Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT) was down 3.60% after it rejected a takeover bid by Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) while pharmaceutical firm Teva Pharma Industries Ltd ADR (NYSE:TEVA) fell 0.71% and fashion retailer L Brands (NYSE:LB), whose signature brand includes Victoria’s Secret, slumped 3.98% after its third quarter earnings failed to meet expectations.
A number of well known brands are set to release their earnings results on Thursday. Firms include Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT), Best Buy Co Inc (NYSE:BBY), Manchester United Ltd (NYSE:MANU) and Gap Inc (NYSE:GPS), among others.
In economic news, jobless claims, import and export prices, and the Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing survey are all due out at 8:30 AM ET (1:30 PM GMT). Industrial production comes out at 9:15 AM ET (2:15 PM GMT), while the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index comes out at 10 AM ET (3:00 PM GMT).
On the speech front, Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan will be speaking at a CFA Society Houston event while Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester is set to give a keynote address at the Cato Institute's 35th Annual Monetary Conference in Washington.
Meanwhile uncertainty around the tax reform bill could weigh on markets. House Republicans are expected to vote on the bill on Thursday, with some analysts uncertain Republicans will reconcile their differences before the Thanksgiving Holiday deadline next week.
Stocks in Europe were up. Germany’s DAX rose 55 points or 0.42% while in France the CAC 40 increased 28 points or 0.53% and in London, the FTSE 100 slipped half a point or 0.01%. Meanwhile the pan-European Euro Stoxx 50 rose 16 points or 0.45% while Spain’s IBEX 35 surged 109 points or 1.09%.
In commodities, gold futures rose 0.08% to $1,278.75 a troy ounce while crude oil futures were down 0.18% to $55.23 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, increased 0.17% to 93.88.