US Stock Futures Up; All Eyes On Bernanke

US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting testimony from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 46 points to 12,691.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 4.60 points to 1,352.00. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 9.25 points to 2,580.75. US stocks closed lower on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 0.39% to 12,727.21, the S&P 500 index falling 0.23% to 1,353.64 and the Nasdaq 100 index declining 0.40% to 2,896.94. Data on June consumer prices will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while industrial production data for June will be released at 9:15 a.m. ET. The home builders' index for July will be released at 10 a.m. ET. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to testify before the Senate Banking Committee at 10 a.m. ET. Johnson & Johnson JNJ is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $1.29 per share on revenue of $16.70 billion. The Coca-Cola Company KO is estimated to report its Q2 earnings at $1.19 per share on revenue of $12.99 billion. Mattel MAT is expected to report its Q2 EPS at $0.21 on revenue of $1.13 billion. Yahoo! YHOO is estimated to post its Q2 earnings at $0.23 per share on revenue of $1.10 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group GS is estimated to report its Q2 earnings at $1.13 per share on revenue of $6.28 billion. Comerica CMA is expected to report its Q2 EPS at $0.62 on revenue of $638.45 million. State Street STT is estimated to report its Q2 EPS at $0.98 on revenue of $2.43 billion. M&T Bank MTB is expected to report its Q2 EPS at $1.68 on revenue of $1.02 billion. Host Hotels & Resorts HST is estimated to report its Q2 EPS at $0.33 on revenue of $1.36 billion. Cintas CTAS reported an 11% rise in its fourth-quarter profit. However, the company issued a cautious view for 2013. J.B. Hunt Transport Services JBHT reported a 23% surge in its second-quarter net income. However, the company's revenue missed analysts' estimates. British consumer prices gained 2.4% y/y in June, versus a rate of 2.8% in May, according to the U.K. Office for National Statistics. European markets were mixed today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index declined 0.15%, London's FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.26%, French CAC 40 Index gained 0.38% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.41%. Asian markets ended higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rising 0.35%, China's Shanghai Composite gaining 0.62% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.77%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 1.75% India's Sensex rose 0.01%. Crude-oil futures for August delivery gained $0.15 to $88.58 a barrel. However, gold futures for August surged $3.00 to $1,594.70 a barrel. The dollar index (DXY) fell 0.11% to 83.05, down from 83.088 in North American trading on Monday.