US Stock Futures Climb As Spotlight Turns To Fed

US stock futures moved up today as investors turn their focus to the Federal Reserve, whose Chairman Ben Bernanke is set to make two speeches today. After losses in early trading, futures on the S&P 500 added 3.2 points to 1062.40, those on Nasdaq 100 moved up 5.75 points to 1797.20. Meanwhile, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 22 points. Investors today are awaiting testimony by the Fed chief on economic conditions. He is also set to deliver a speech at an employment conference after markets close. Currency analysts from UBS AG

say, "Risk appetite appears to have recovered somewhat, but we continue to see this as mere short-covering ahead of some crucial policy decisions in the next 24 hours.” On the corporate front, Texas Instruments Inc

, Bank of America Corp.

and Allscripts-Misys Healthcare Solutions Inc

are the stocks that might remain in focus today. While BAC was selling its 25% stake in a Mexican operation of Banco Santander (

), MDRX is buying Eclipsys Corp (

) in an all-stock deal worth $1.3 billion. Asian markets have ended positive today, with the Shanghai Composite climbing 2.8% on a report of Chinese exports jumping roughly 50% in May. Read more