U.S. futures higher despite "fiscal cliff" worries; Dow Jones up 0.12%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open on Tuesday, as new hopes for progress in tackling Spain and Greece's debt woes supported sentiment, although sustained concerns over U.S. fiscal policy continued to weigh.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.12% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.11% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.16% increase.

Sentiment was boosted after Greece on Monday launched a scheme to buy back its debt from private investors, while Madrid formally requested a bailout to recapitalize its banking sector.

Meanwhile, investors continued to watch negotiations between Democrats and Republicans to avoid the U.S. fiscal cliff, a set of spending cuts and tax increases due to come into effect on January 1 if lawmakers cannot reach an agreement on reducing the budget deficit.

The White House dismissed a proposal from congressional Republicans on Monday that included tax reforms and spending cuts, saying it did not meet President Barack Obama's pledge to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans.

Tech stocks were expected to be active, after Qualcomm said it was preparing to invest as much as USD120 million in Sharp, a cash injection likely to make it the struggling Japanese TV maker's biggest shareholder, in addition to boosting Sharp's efforts to remain viable.

Shares in Qualcomm edged down 0.11% in after hour trading.

The energy sector was also likely to be in focus, amid reports Chevron is to reveal this week a highly anticipated mark-up on the price tag for the Gorgon liquefied natural gas export complex on a remote island off Western Australia. Chevron shares fell 0.23% after hours.

Elsewhere in company news, U.S. agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland tightened its grip on GrainCorp, hiking its bid to USD2.9 billion and buying more shares, but may need to offer more to win over Australia's last major independent grains handler.

In financial stocks, Cerberus Capital Management LP was reportedly in talks to join Virtu Financial LLC's bid for U.S. brokerage Knight Capital Group Inc, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Other stocks in focus included Autozone, the largest U.S. auto parts retail chain, due to post quarterly results later in the day.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.59%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.71%, Germany's DAX added 0.26%, while Britain's FTSE 100 inched up 0.01%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index edged 0.15% higher, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.27%.