Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Thursday as Wall Street's main indexes attempted to stage a recovery in the wake of their sharpest one-day decline in almost six weeks a day earlier.
By 6:55 AM ET, Dow futures were up 46 points or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures futures were up just 6 points or 0.2% and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.3%.
Markets tumbled on Wednesday after employment and manufacturing data suggested that the U.S.-China trade war is taking an increasing toll on the U.S. economy.
Adding to trade concerns, the U.S. won approval on Wednesday to levy tariffs on $7.5 billion worth of European goods over illegal subsidies handed to Airbus, threatening to trigger a transatlantic trade war.
Investors were looking ahead to the release of IHS Markit’s services and composite purchasing managers indices, along with the Institute of Supply Management’s non-manufacturing surveys later in the trading day for fresh indications of the strength of the economy, ahead of Friday’s government employment report for September.
Earlier Thursday, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said the outlook for the U.S. economy is "quite good" but modest monetary policy adjustments will not be enough to offset potential economic shocks.
In earnings news, shares in Pepsi (NASDAQ:PEP) rose in premarket trading after it beat quarterly revenue and profit estimates, as ramped up advertising and new low-calorie versions of Gatorade boosted demand for its beverages in North America. Earnings were down nearly 15% year-on-year, even so.
Brewer Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ) was also due to report ahead of the opening bell, while Costco (NASDAQ:COST) was set to report after the close.
Meanwhile, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) was in focus after falling short of expectations with its third-quarter deliveries, which totalled 97,000. CEO Elon Musk had predicted the company would crack 100,000 for the first time.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against six rival currencies, was little changed at 98.74. In commodities, gold futures were flat at $1,507.55 a troy ounce, while crude oil was a touch lower at $52.55 a barrel.
--Reuters contributed to this report