Investing.com - U.S. stock market futures pointed to a modestly higher open on Thursday, as investors looked ahead to the release of key U.S. economic reports, as well as a number of highly anticipated corporate earnings reports.
Ahead of the open, the Dow pointed to a 0.1% gain, the S&P 500 signaled a 0.1% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 indicated an increase of 0.25%.
The U.S. is to publish the weekly report on initial jobless claims before the bell, while the Institute of Supply Management is to release a report on manufacturing activity shortly after the open.
Data released Wednesday showed that the U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 0.1% in the first three months of the year, well below forecasts for an expansion of 1.2%.
The Fed said Wednesday it would reduce its bond purchases by $10 billion to a total of $45 billion a month, in a widely expected decision. The U.S. central bank acknowledged that first quarter growth was far weaker than expected, but added that momentum had started to pick up in recent weeks.
Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM)-Mobil shares rose 0.4% in pre-market trade ahead of the oil giant’s quarterly earnings report due ahead of the opening bell.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included Mastercard (NYSE:MA), Expedia (NASDAQ:EXPE), ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and LinkedIn (NYSE:LNKD), which are all scheduled to report quarterly results later in the day.
After Wednesday’s closing bell, Yelp (NYSE:YELP) said its first quarter loss narrowed more than expected, sending its shares 9.3% higher.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were modestly higher in subdued trade, with several bourses shut for the May 1 public holiday.
London’s FTSE 100 inched up 0.3%. The U.K. Index is the only major bourse open Thursday with markets in Germany, France and some other countries closed for May Day. All national benchmarks will reopen on Friday.
During the Asian trading session, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rallied 1.27%. Markets in Hong Kong, China and South Korea remained closed for the May 1 holiday.
Data released earlier showed that China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index inched up to 50.4 in April, just below an expectation of 50.5, and higher than the 50.3 reported last month.