US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Economic Data

US stock futures are higher this morning, ahead of economic data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 59 points to 13,404.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 6.80 points to 1,433.70. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 11.50 points to 2,785.75. US stocks closed lower on Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping 0.33% to 13,413.51, the S&P 500 index falling 0.57% to 1,433.32 and the Nasdaq 100 index declining 0.77% to 3,093.70. Data on weekly jobless claims; orders for durable goods, and Q2 GDP will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Discover Financial Services DFS is projected to report its Q3 earnings at $1.04 per share on revenue of $1.90 billion. Micron Technology MU is estimated to post a Q4 loss at $0.22 per share on revenue of $2.12 billion. Research In Motion Limited RIMM is projected to post a Q2 loss at $0.47 per share on revenue of $2.49 billion. Nike NKE is estimated to post its Q1 EPS at $1.12 on revenue of $6.41 billion. Progress Software PRGS reported an upbeat third-quarter profit. Pall PLL lifted its quarterly dividend by 19% to $0.25 per share. Thor Industries THO reported better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter earnings. European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.51%, London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.24%, French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.72% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.42%. Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rising 0.48%, China's Shanghai Composite surging 2.60% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.46%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.14% and India's Sensex declined 0.28%.