US Stock Futures Up After China Trade Surplus; All Eyes On Microsoft

US stock futures are higher this morning, as China reported stronger-than-expected trade surplus. Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT) is reportedly nearing a deal to purchase Internet phone company Skype Technologies. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 39 points to 12,670.00 and futures on the S&P 500 stock index rose 4.90 points to 1,347.60. Nasdaq 100 futures surged 10.50 points to 2,397.00.US stocks closed higher on Monday, with the Dow Jones industrial average gaining 0.36% to 12,684.68, the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index surging 0.45% to 1,346.29 and the NASDAQ composite index rising 0.55% to 2,843.25. Data on April small-business sentiment indicator produced by the National Federation of Independent Business will be released at 7:30 a.m. ET and US import prices for April will be released at 8:30 a.m. Wholesale trade data for March will be released at 10 a.m. Dean Foods Co (NYSE: DF) is projected to report its Q1 EPS at $0.06 on revenue of $3.07 billion. Molycorp Inc (NYSE: MCP) is estimated to post its Q1 EPS at $0.10 on revenue of $41.68 million. Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) is projected to report its FQ2 EPS at $0.56 on revenue of $9.13 billion. A.C. Moore Arts & Crafts Inc (NASDAQ: ACMR) is expected to post a Q1 loss at $0.32 per share on revenue of $101.32 million.McDermott International Inc (NYSE: MDR) is estimated to post its Q1 earnings at $0.28 per share on revenue of $738.98 million. Wendy's/Arby's Group Inc (NYSE: WEN) is expected to report its Q1 EPS at $0.02 on revenue of $845.59 million. Black Hills Corporation (NYSE: BKH) is expected to post its Q1 EPS at $0.84 on revenue of $407.31 million.MannKind Corp (NASDAQ: MNKD) reported a Q1 loss at $41.5 million, or $0.34 per share, versus a loss of $44.7 million, or $0.40 per share, in the year-ago quarter. The company's revenue came in at $50,000. However, analysts had expected a loss of $0.29 per share. The company is seeking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for an inhaled insulin treatment. FDA told MannKind to run additional trials on its drug Afrezza. Microsoft Corp is nearing a deal to purchase Internet phone company Skype Technologies for $8.5 billion including assumed debt, a source related with the situation said. Community Health Systems Inc (NYSE: CYH) withdrawn its offer to buy all Tenet Healthcare Corp (NYSE: THC) shares.China reported an April trade surplus of $11.4 billion, up from $1.68 billion, in the year-ago period and versus $139 million in March. Asian markets ended mixed, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surging 0.25%Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving down 0.58% and China's Shanghai Composite rising 0.63%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.76% and India's Sensex dropped 0.16%.European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index has gained 0.82%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 1.03%.Crude for June delivery fell $1.52 to $101.03 a barrel in electronic trade.The US dollar gained against most major rivals. Against the dollar, the euro dropped 0.2% at $1.4335. Against the yen, the dollar gained 0.4% to trade at 80.60 yen.Read more from Benzinga's Markets.