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Tuesday 9 July 2013

U.S. futures higher despite Fed speculation; Dow Jones up 0.26%

U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Tuesday, even as Fridays upbeat U.S. jobs report continued to support speculation that the Federal Reserve could soon scale back its stimulus program. 

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.26% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.30% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.34% increase. 

Data last week showed that the U.S. economy added 195,000 jobs in June, more than the 165,000 increase forecast by economists. 

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said last month the bank could begin tapering its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program by the end of 2013 if the economy picks up as the central bank expects. 

Alcoa was likely to be in focus after the aluminum producer kicked off second-quarter earnings season on Monday with higher-than-expected numbers. 

The company posted earnings of 7 cents a share on revenues of USD5.85 billion, down from USD5.96 billion a year ago, while nalysts were expecting earnings of 6 cents per share, on revenues of USD5.83 billion. 

Shares were up 1.39% in pre-market trade. 

In the tech sector, Blackberry was expected to be active, as the Canadian smartphone maker was set to hold its annual meeting Tuesday morning, after last week's poor quarterly results triggered a 28% dive in share price. 

Separately, Dell dipped 0.04% in extended trading after the USD24.4 billion buyout proposal from Chief Executive Officer Michael Dell and partner Silver Lake Management got a surprise endorsement On Monday from Institutional Shareholder Services. 

Other stocks expected to be in focus included Wolverine Worldwide and Helen of Troy, due to report earnings later in the day. 

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher The EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.65%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.60%, Germany's DAX rallied 0.97%, while Britain's FTSE 100 jumped 0.83%. 

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 0.49%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged 2.58%.

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