1 of 3. Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange, April 5, 2013.
Credit: Reuters/Brendan McDermid
NEW YORK |
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Stock index futures rose on Monday, bouncing back from the worst weekly decline this year even as investors face the prospect of a lackluster corporate earnings season.
Earnings forecasts have been scaled back heading into first-quarter reports. S&P 500 earnings are expected to have risen just 1.6 percent from a year ago, according to Thomson Reuters data, down from a 4.3 percent forecast in January.
JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) and Bed Bath and Beyond (BBBY.O) are among the major companies set to announce results later in the week, while Alcoa’s (AA.N) earnings will be the first from a Dow component after Monday’s closing bell.
Worries on Friday about the pace of earnings growth was a factor in Wall Street racking up its worst week this year so far, while a weaker-than-expected jobs report prompted concern the U.S. economy is headed for a slow patch.
S&P 500 futures rose 5.2 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 18 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 6 points.
General Electric Co (GE.N) said it will buy oilfield services provider Lufkin Industries Inc (LUFK.O) for about $ 3.3 billion, sending Lufkin shares up more than 37 percent in premarket trade.
Investors will be keeping an eye on the latest developments out of the euro zone after a constitutional court in Portugal overturned key austerity measures in the government’s latest budget. Portugal’s prime minister said the government will cut spending to meet targets agreed with its lenders.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will give a speech later on Monday after markets are closed. Investors have been watching for any insight into the Fed’s thinking on how long the central bank will keep its asset purchase program in place as it tries to boost the economic recovery.
(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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