Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Thursday, as investors returned to the market following the Christmas Holiday break.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.25% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a rise of 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.1% increase.
U.S. stock markets remained closed on Wednesday for Christmas. Trading volumes are expected to remain light as most market players are still off due to the Christmas holiday and as many traders already closed books before the end of the year.
Market players looked ahead to weekly U.S. data on initial jobless claims later in the day to gauge if the U.S. economy will be strong enough to allow the Federal Reserve to continue withdrawing support through 2014.
Target shares will continue to fall under scrutiny after the retailer said it held a conference call with attorneys general across the country on Tuesday regarding an ongoing credit card hacking saga.
Other stocks in focus include Amazon, UPS and FedEx amid reports the postal service failed to deliver packages on time for Christmas.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets remained closed for the Boxing Day holiday.
Meanwhile, in Asia, stock markets were mostly higher in holiday-thinned trade, with shares in Japan climbing to the strongest level since 2007 as the yen weakened to a five-year low against the U.S. dollar, boosting sentiment.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed up 1.03%, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.6%. Financial markets in New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong and Indonesia were closed for national holidays.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.25% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a rise of 0.15%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.1% increase.
U.S. stock markets remained closed on Wednesday for Christmas. Trading volumes are expected to remain light as most market players are still off due to the Christmas holiday and as many traders already closed books before the end of the year.
Market players looked ahead to weekly U.S. data on initial jobless claims later in the day to gauge if the U.S. economy will be strong enough to allow the Federal Reserve to continue withdrawing support through 2014.
Target shares will continue to fall under scrutiny after the retailer said it held a conference call with attorneys general across the country on Tuesday regarding an ongoing credit card hacking saga.
Other stocks in focus include Amazon, UPS and FedEx amid reports the postal service failed to deliver packages on time for Christmas.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets remained closed for the Boxing Day holiday.
Meanwhile, in Asia, stock markets were mostly higher in holiday-thinned trade, with shares in Japan climbing to the strongest level since 2007 as the yen weakened to a five-year low against the U.S. dollar, boosting sentiment.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index closed up 1.03%, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1.6%. Financial markets in New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong and Indonesia were closed for national holidays.