Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a sharply higher open on Friday, boosted by hopes for imminent central bank easing measures, as investors awaited the release of U.S. economic data as well as a speech by U.S. central bank Chairman Ben Bernanke later in the day.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.88% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.91% rally, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.99% jump.
Investors were eyeing Bernanke’s speech at a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, amid ongoing speculation over how close the Fed may be to implementing more economic stimulus.
Meanwhile, sentiment remained supported by expectations that the European Central Bank is working on measures to help stabilize the euro zone's sovereign debt markets, ahead of its next policy meeting on September 6.
Earlier in the day, ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said that the central bank is working on the possibility of intervening in the short-term bond market.
The tech sector was expected to be active, following reports Google Chief Executive Larry Page and Apple CEO Tim Cook have been conducting behind-the-scenes talks about a range of intellectual property matters, including patent disputes between the two companies.
Separately, Bloomberg reported earlier that Apple is being sued by French phone maker Alcatel-Lucent over accusations it infringed a patent for video-compression technology.
The news came after the iPhone maker lost a patent lawsuit in Japan, as a Tokyo judge ruled that rival Samsung smartphones and a tablet computer didn’t infringe on an Apple invention for synchronizing music and video data with servers.
Science Applications International was also expected to move after saying late Thursday that it plans to split into two independently traded companies to bid for more contracts, which remains impossible for now due to conflict-of-interest regulations.
In the financial sector, JPMorgan was likely to be in focus, after the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. lender intends to cut financial risks by reducing brokerage dealings, sending shares up 0.95% in pre-market trade.
Among earnings, Splunk was slated to move higher, as shares soared 15.74% in early trading after the provider of operational intelligence software reported a narrower-than-estimated fiscal second-quarter loss and raised its full-year sales forecast.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply higher. The EURO STOXX 50 surged 1.49%, France’s CAC 40 jumped 1.40%, Germany's DAX rallied 1.41%, while Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 0.68%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.36%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.6%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a report on Chicago’s purchasing managers’ index, as well as revised data by the University of Michigan on consumer sentiment and official data on factory orders.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.88% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.91% rally, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.99% jump.
Investors were eyeing Bernanke’s speech at a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, amid ongoing speculation over how close the Fed may be to implementing more economic stimulus.
Meanwhile, sentiment remained supported by expectations that the European Central Bank is working on measures to help stabilize the euro zone's sovereign debt markets, ahead of its next policy meeting on September 6.
Earlier in the day, ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said that the central bank is working on the possibility of intervening in the short-term bond market.
The tech sector was expected to be active, following reports Google Chief Executive Larry Page and Apple CEO Tim Cook have been conducting behind-the-scenes talks about a range of intellectual property matters, including patent disputes between the two companies.
Separately, Bloomberg reported earlier that Apple is being sued by French phone maker Alcatel-Lucent over accusations it infringed a patent for video-compression technology.
The news came after the iPhone maker lost a patent lawsuit in Japan, as a Tokyo judge ruled that rival Samsung smartphones and a tablet computer didn’t infringe on an Apple invention for synchronizing music and video data with servers.
Science Applications International was also expected to move after saying late Thursday that it plans to split into two independently traded companies to bid for more contracts, which remains impossible for now due to conflict-of-interest regulations.
In the financial sector, JPMorgan was likely to be in focus, after the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. lender intends to cut financial risks by reducing brokerage dealings, sending shares up 0.95% in pre-market trade.
Among earnings, Splunk was slated to move higher, as shares soared 15.74% in early trading after the provider of operational intelligence software reported a narrower-than-estimated fiscal second-quarter loss and raised its full-year sales forecast.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply higher. The EURO STOXX 50 surged 1.49%, France’s CAC 40 jumped 1.40%, Germany's DAX rallied 1.41%, while Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 0.68%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.36%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.6%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release a report on Chicago’s purchasing managers’ index, as well as revised data by the University of Michigan on consumer sentiment and official data on factory orders.