U.S. futures rise as markets eye U.S. vote; Dow Jones up 0.32%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open, as markets awaited the outcome of the U.S. Presidential elections, while concerns over the handling of Greece's financial troubles continued to linger.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.32% rise, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.34% gain, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.51% increase.

Investors remained cautious ahead of the start of voting in the U.S. presidential elections, with opinion polls pointing to a tight race between incumbent President Barack Obama and Republican contender Mitt Romney.

Markets were also jittery ahead of Wednesday’s parliamentary vote in Greece on new austerity measures required for Athens to get its next round of international aid.

On Monday, European Union Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn said the euro zone was on track to make a decision on unlocking Greece’s next installment of financial aid at a meeting of the bloc’s finance ministers next week.

Carmakers were expected to be active after Nissan Motor cut its full-year net profit forecast by 20%, although it posted a better than expected 3-month net profit. Shares in General Motors dropped 0.38% in after-hour trade.

Children's toymaker LeapFrog Enterprises was also likely to be in focus, after it raised its full-year forecast and said it will increase its advertising spending to attract more shoppers during the holiday season, sending shares up 4.49% after hours.

In the pharmaceutical sector, Abbott Laboratories was slated to move after it reportedly sold USD14.7 billion of bonds on Monday in the largest dollar-denominated offering in more than three years as the drug and medical-device maker prepares to split in two.

Elsewhere, real estate website Zillow forecast fourth-quarter revenue below analysts' estimates after it lost one of its larger advertisers, Foreclosure.com, sending the company's shares diving 19.99% in pre-market trading.

Other stocks in focus included Cablevision, CVS Caremark Corp and News Corp, due to report earnings later in the day.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.73%, France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.76%, Germany's DAX rose 0.66%, while Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.65%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.28%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dropped 0.36%.