US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Bernanke Speech

US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech in Jackson Hole. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 45 points to 13,027.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 5.70 points to 1,402.80. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 12.75 points to 2,766.50. US stocks closed lower on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 0.81% to 13,000.71, the S&P 500 index falling 0.78% to 1,399.48 and the Nasdaq 100 index declining 1.05% to 3,048.71. The Chicago-area purchasing managers' index for the month of August will be released at 9:45 a.m. ET. However, the University of Michigan's consumer-sentiment index will be released at 9:55 a.m. ET. Data on July factory orders will be released at 10 a.m. ET. Ben Bernanke will speak at an economic conference at 10 a.m. ET. SAIC

reported a drop in its fiscal second-quarter profit and announced its plans to split the company into two publicly traded companies. OmniVision Technologies

reported better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter revenue and issued upbeat revenue forecast for the current quarter. Zumiez

reported downbeat second-quarter earnings and issued a weak forecast for the third quarter. Splunk

reported a 71% surge in its fiscal second-quarter sales and lifted its view for the fiscal year. European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.31%, French CAC 40 index gained 0.61%. London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 0.30% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.57%. Asian markets ended lower, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average falling 1.60%, China's Shanghai Composite dropping 0.25% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving down 0.03%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.36% and India's Sensex dipped 0.92%. Nymex crude-oil futures gained $0.30 to trade at $94.92 a barrel in electronic trade, while gold futures rose $4 to $1,661.10 an ounce. The dollar index (DXY) declined 0.2% to 81.463. The euro gained 0.60% versus the dollar to trade at $1.2582.