Investing.com - U.S. stock markets pointed to a higher open on Thursday, as oil prices extended sharp gains on hopes that big producers will cap output, boosting appetite for riskier assets.
Oil prices jumped nearly 3% on Thursday, extending strong gains from the prior session after Iran backed plans by Russia and Saudi Arabia to cap crude oil production at January levels.
The blue-chip Dow futures climbed 76 points, or 0.46%, by 12:25GMT, or 7:25AM ET, the S&P 500 futures rose 9 points, or 0.43%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 27 points, or 0.63%.
U.S. stocks tallied their third straight session of gains on Wednesday, led by energy shares as oil prices jumped while better than expected economic data helped allay growth concerns.
Among active pre-market movers, wholesale technology distributor Ingram Micro Inc (N:IM) saw shares surge 25% ahead of the bell after the company said late Wednesday it will be acquired by Chinese shipping company Tianjin Tianhai in a $6 billion all-cash deal.
NVIDIA Corporation (O:NVDA) shares jumped 7.2% after the technology company posted better-than-expected quarterly results after Wednesday’s closing bell.
On the downside, Wal-Mart (N:WMT) shares dropped 4% after the Dow component reported weaker than expected fourth quarter revenue and said it expects virtually no sales growth this year.
Fast-food restaurant Jack In The Box Inc (O:JACK) saw shares sink 20% after its fiscal first-quarter earnings fell nearly 10 cents per share short of estimates.
Gold producer Newmont Mining (N:NEM) dropped 3.3% after the company reported fourth-quarter earnings that fell short of market expectations after Wednesday’s closing bell.
On the data front, the U.S. is to publish reports on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia region and the weekly report on initial jobless claims at 13:30GMT, or 8:30AM ET. Leading indicators are released at 10:00AM.
The Energy Information Administration reports natural gas inventories at 10:30AM and oil inventory data are expected at 11:00AM.
Minutes from the Fed’s January meeting published Wednesday revealed that policymakers worried that tighter global financial conditions could hit the U.S. economy and considered changing their planned path of interest rate hikes in 2016.
Elsewhere, European and Asian shares jumped to two-week highs on Thursday, as oil prices edged higher and worries about the global financial system abated slightly.