US Stock Futures Signal Higher Start On Wall Street

US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting economic data and earnings reports. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 110 points to 15,543.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 13 points to 1,693.50. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 22.50 points to 3,105.50.US stocks closed mixed on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 0.14% to 15,499.54, the S&P 500 index falling 0.01% to 1,685.73 and the Nasdaq 100 index gaining 0.27% to 3,626.37.Data on weekly jobless claims will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the Markit PMI manufacturing final index for July will be released at 8:58 a.m. ET. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index will be released at 9:45 a.m. ET. The ISM manufacturing composite index for July and construction spending data for June will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. The EIA weekly report on natural gas stocks will be released at 10:30 a.m. ET, while money supply data will be released at 4:30 p.m. ET. Data on motor vehicle sales for July will be released today. Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM) reported a 21% rise in quarterly profit. Procter & Gamble Co (NYSE: PG) is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $0.77 per share on revenue of $20.55 billion. Apache (NYSE: APA) is expected to report its Q2 earnings at $2.01 per share on revenue of $4.28 billion. ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $1.29 per share on revenue of $12.75 billion. Kellogg Company (NYSE: K) is expected to report its Q2 earnings at $0.98 per share on revenue of $3.81 billion.The Clorox Company (NYSE: CLX) is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $1.34 per share on revenue of $1.57 billion. American International Group (NYSE: AIG) is projected to post its Q2 earnings at $0.86 per share on revenue of $8.62 billion. LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD) is expected to post its Q2 earnings at $0.31 per share on revenue of $353.86 million. Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) is expected to post its Q2 earnings at $1.65 per share on revenue of $5.58 billion.Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE: TEVA) is estimated to post its Q2 earnings at $1.20 per share on revenue of $4.94 billion. DIRECTV (NASDAQ: DTV) is estimated to report its Q2 earnings at $1.33 per share on revenue of $7.75 billion. Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) is expected to report its Q2 earnings at $1.90 per share on revenue of $105.54 billion. Cigna (NYSE: CI) is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $1.60 per share on revenue of $7.38 billion.European markets were mostly higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.87%, London's FTSE 100 index gained 0.44%, French CAC 40 Index surged 0.41% and German DAX 30 index rose 1.23%.Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average jumping 2.47%, China's Shanghai Composite gaining 1.77% and Australia's ASX/S&P500 rising 0.23%. Hong Kong's Heng Seng Index rose 0.94% and India's Sensex fell 0.22%.China's official manufacturing PMI climbed to 50.3 in July, versus 50.1 in June.