(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) U.S. stock futures were slightly higher in early trading Thursday after the Dow and the S&P 500 both hit new highs again yesterday and China's Shanghai Composite Index surged more than 4% overnight the largest gain in two years.
Futures on the three major US indexes were up between 0.1% and 0.2% as of 7:45am ET.
As investors eagerly await November's employment report tomorrow they will get new labor market data today with the release of weekly jobless claims numbers. Economists are expecting the report due for release at 8:30am ET to show 295000 new claims for the week ending November 29 down from 313000 the previous week.
In corporate activity Holdings () leads the list of quarterly results from retailers this morning reporting a smaller than expected loss and revenue that topped estimates as same store sales at and Kmart also beat forecasts.
Teen retailer () reported its eighth straight quarterly loss late Wednesday but it matched estimates while revenues beat. Shares still fell over 10% premarket as same store sales dropped 11% and the company announced weak guidance and plans to shut 75 stores.
PVH () topped estimates with its earnings though revenue came in just short of forecasts with shares down over 1% premarket as it also lowered its guidance.
() shares rose 0.5% before the opening bell as its earnings topped views even though sales fell below forecasts. The retailer also lowered its full year forecast.
After the closing bell retailers American Eagle () Five Below (NASDAQ:FIVE) and () are due report results.
In other stock news () is selling its Chinese business to China-based real estate firm Zhejiang Jiayuan Group to focus on its North American stores. It did not reveal the price paid by the buyer.
Walt Disney () has raised its dividend by 33.7% with the new annual payout at $1.15 versus 86 cents previously. Shares rose premarket.
(NYSE:UL) is planning to split its spreads business which includes brands like I Can't Believe It's Not Butter into a standalone unit. The division is expected to be fully operational by mid 2015.
European markets were higher today with shares in Germany leading the region as the ECB left key interest rates unchanged. Markets will be looking to ECB President Mario Draghi's press conference later this morning to see if he has been able to convince Germany for the need for outright quantitative easing.
Asian markets also finished in positive territory with China's index rising 4.3% overnight coinciding with not just a rate cut by the PBOC but also the opening up of trading of mainland stocks to the rest of the world.
In commodities January crude futures in New York fell 61 cents to $66.77 a barrel in electronic trading while February gold lost $6 to $1203 an ounce.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.