The FINANCIAL — LONDON (MarketWatch) — U.S. stock futures indicated a positive start for Wall Street on Friday, with investors likely to be handed figures showing the mood of U.S. consumers has brightened, according to Nasdaq, an American stock exchange.
Alongside the plateful of economic data, a speech by Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota will also be watched by investors.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4) rose 42 points, or 0.3%, to 16,724, while those for the S&P 500 index (SPU4) gained 4 points to 1,957.60. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index (NDU4) tacked on 12.25 points, or 0.3%, to 3,980.25, according to Nasdaq.
A reading on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters is due at 9:55 a.m. Eastern Time. The mood is expected to have improved in August; economists polled by MarketWatch expect a preliminary reading of 82.3, compared with 81.8 in July. Analysts look at sentiment surveys to get a feel for the direction of consumer spending, the key driver of the U.S. economy.
“Recent stock gains and the steady weekly decline in gasoline prices at the pump likely buoyed August sentiment,” said Crédit Agricole’s chief economist for North America Michael Carey.
The Federal Reserve’s July report on industrial production and capacity utilization is due at 9:15 a.m. Eastern Time. Economists project slight increases for each measure, with industrial production likely to increase a seasonally adjusted 0.3%, according to Nasdaq.
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey will provide fresh data on manufacturing trends, and will be released at 8:30 a.m. At the same time, the U.S. Labor Department will report on July producer prices.
At 10:45 a.m. Eastern, Narayana Kocherlakota, president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve, will talk about the economy and the state of community banking at the Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota’s annual meeting Brainerd, Minn. Kocherlakota, one of the Fed’s leading doves, is a voting member of the Fed policy committee this year.
U.S. stocks on Thursday closed modestly higher, leaving the S&P 500 index (SPX) up 0.4%, according to Nasdaq.
Crédit Agricole’s Carey noted that geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East have put a strain on market sentiment in recent weeks.
In Ukraine on Friday, border guards and customs officers began inspecting a convoy of trucks that Russia says contains humanitarian aid for war-torn eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has said the convoy could be used as a prelude to a Russian invasion, according to Nasdaq.
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