Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Friday, as markets reopened after the Thanksgiving holiday.
With no major earnings reports or economic data due during the session, investors were preparing to monitor how one of the key shopping days of the year known as "Black Friday" - the Friday after Thanksgiving - unfolds.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.29%, the S&P 500 index added 0.21%, while the Nasdaq Composite index climbed 0.47%.
Retailers were expected to be active for the what is considered to be the biggest shopping day of the Chirstmas holiday season in the U.S. Wal-Mart shares rose 0.32% at the open of the U.S. trading session, and Best Buy rallied 1.19%, while Macy's and J.C. Penney gained 0.37% and 1.59% respectively.
In the financial sector, Morgan Stanley edged up 0.10% amid reports the U.S. lender was set to take the top spot in Japanese mergers and acquisitions for the first time in 16 years, through its venture with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.
Among tech stocks, Apple climbed 0.74% following reports the company sold three of every four smartphones in Japan last month after the country’s largest carrier, NTT Docomo, began carrying the iPhone. According to Bloomberg, Apple won 76% of Japanese smartphone sales last month.
Separaely, the tech giant was reported to have said that a monitor appointed by a judge to oversee antitrust compliance in its electronic books price-fixing case is charging too much money.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 inched up 0.06%, France’s CAC 40 edged 0.09% higher, Germany's DAX added 0.25%, while Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.34%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.39%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.41%.
U.S. stock and bond markets were to close early for Thanksgiving weekend.
With no major earnings reports or economic data due during the session, investors were preparing to monitor how one of the key shopping days of the year known as "Black Friday" - the Friday after Thanksgiving - unfolds.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.29%, the S&P 500 index added 0.21%, while the Nasdaq Composite index climbed 0.47%.
Retailers were expected to be active for the what is considered to be the biggest shopping day of the Chirstmas holiday season in the U.S. Wal-Mart shares rose 0.32% at the open of the U.S. trading session, and Best Buy rallied 1.19%, while Macy's and J.C. Penney gained 0.37% and 1.59% respectively.
In the financial sector, Morgan Stanley edged up 0.10% amid reports the U.S. lender was set to take the top spot in Japanese mergers and acquisitions for the first time in 16 years, through its venture with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.
Among tech stocks, Apple climbed 0.74% following reports the company sold three of every four smartphones in Japan last month after the country’s largest carrier, NTT Docomo, began carrying the iPhone. According to Bloomberg, Apple won 76% of Japanese smartphone sales last month.
Separaely, the tech giant was reported to have said that a monitor appointed by a judge to oversee antitrust compliance in its electronic books price-fixing case is charging too much money.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 inched up 0.06%, France’s CAC 40 edged 0.09% higher, Germany's DAX added 0.25%, while Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.34%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.39%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index shed 0.41%.
U.S. stock and bond markets were to close early for Thanksgiving weekend.