Investing.com - U.S. stock markets pointed to a modestly higher open on Thursday, as stabilizing oil prices supported gains.
The blue-chip Dow futures inched up 26 points, or 0.16%, by 11:55GMT, or 6:55AM ET, the S&P 500 futures tacked on 4 points, or 0.17%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 7 points, or 0.15%.
Reduced volatility in oil prices helped boost appetite for riskier assets on Thursday. U.S. crude was down just 13 cents, or 0.4%, at $32.02 a barrel during early morning hours in New York, while Brent shed 21 cents, or 0.61%, to $34.20.
Weekly stockpile data released Wednesday showed that U.S. oil inventories rose to an all-time high last week, while also pointing to strong demand for gasoline and distillates.
Market players looked ahead to key U.S. economic data later in the day to gauge if the world's largest economy is strong enough to withstand further rate hikes in 2016. The U.S. is to release data on durable goods orders for January as well as the weekly report on initial jobless claims at 15:30GMT, or 8:30AM ET.
Traders also awaited comments from a pair of Federal Reserve officials on Thursday to judge the balance of opinion among policymakers on the prospect of further rate hikes.
Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart gives welcoming remarks at the Atlanta Fed 2016 Banking Outlook Conference at 13:15GMT, or 8:15AM ET, while San Francisco Fed President John Williams is scheduled to give his outlook on the economy at 17:00GMT, or 12:00PM ET.
In earnings news, Best Buy (N:BBY), Kohl's (N:KSS), Campbell Soup (N:CPB) and Sears Holdings (O:SHLD) are scheduled to report earnings ahead of the opening bell, while Kraft Heinz (O:KHC), Herbalife (N:HLF), Gap Inc (N:GPS), Baidu Inc (O:BIDU) and Intuit (O:INTU) are among those posting results after the close.
Among active pre-market movers, shares of Salesforce.com (N:CRM) jumped almost 9% ahead of the bell after posting better-than-expected forward guidance late Wednesday.
HP (N:HPQ) shares were down 2% after the PC maker reported declining quarterly earnings and sales that missed analyst estimates.
Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (N:BUD) shares fell almost 3% after the brewer posted disappointing fourth quarter net profit due to challenges in key emerging markets.
Elsewhere, European stock markets climbed Thursday, with bank and commodity shares catching a break from recent declines, although a revision to euro zone inflation data dented confidence.
Meanwhile, in Asia, China’s Shanghai Composite plunged 6.4% on Thursday, the biggest one-day percentage drop since January 26, amid heightened worries about market liquidity. However, the rest of the region fared better, boosted by a positive finish on Wall Street yesterday after oil prices steadied.