U.S. futures steady ahead of trade data; Dow Jones up 0.01%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a steady open on Friday, as market sentiment found support after an agreement on a European budget ceiling was announced, while investors eyed the release of U.S. trade balance data later in the day.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.01% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.08% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.13% increase.

Sentiment found support after European Union leaders agreed on the first-ever cuts in the bloc’s budget, setting a 2014-2020 spending ceiling of EUR960 billion, down from an original proposal of EUR1.047 trillion and less than the EUR994 billion spent in the current budget cycle.

Investor confidence had weakened on Thursday, after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said that economic weakness in the euro area would persist during the early part of 2013 but said the economy should start to recover “later” in the year.

Internet-related companies were expected to be active, after LinkedIn Corp announced quarterly profits that exceeded expectations and a bullish forecast for 2013, sending shares up 8.99% in pre-market trade.

Tech stocks were also likely to be in focus, as RadioShack named Walgreen executive Joseph Magnacca as its new chief executive, hoping it will help boost sales. Shares in the company climbed 2.89% in after-hour trade.

Separately, chipmaker Microchip Technology soared 6.36% in late trading, after forecasting a larger-than-expected profit and revenue for the current quarter after reporting third-quarter results that beat analysts' expectations.

Elsewhere, U.S. agencies cleared Boeing to restart test flights of its grounded 787 Dreamliners in order to get more data on potentially faulty batteries.

However, they also demanded a closer look at how the batteries were approved, which may delay resuming delivery of Boeing's newest aircraft.

Boeing shares edged up 0.10% after hours.

Other stocks in focus included DreamWorks Animation SKG, after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company might cut a maximum of 500 jobs from its 2,000 member workforce following disappointing holiday results and delays to its film lineup.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 advanced 0.68%, France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.68%, Germany's DAX rose 0.35%, while Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.52%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.16%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled 1.8%.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release official data on the trade balance.