BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Trading on Thursday might be impacted by reaction to reports on weekly jobless claims, housing starts, and Philadelphia-area manufacturing activity, etc. The market is still reflecting the positive trend after the swearing-in of President Joe Bidden Jr.
Asian shares finished broadly higher, while European shares are trading up.
Initial cues from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might be opening moderately higher.
As of 7.45 am ET, the Dow futures were adding 59.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were up 8.25 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were gaining 56.75 points.
The U.S. major averages saw further upside going into the close on Wednesday. The Dow advanced 257.86 points or 0.8 percent to 31,188.38, the Nasdaq soared 260.07 points or 2 percent to 13,457.25 and the S&P 500 jumped 52.94 points or 1.4 percent to 3,851.85.
On the economic front, the Housing Starts and Permits data for December will be issued at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for 1.558 million, while it was 1.547 million in the previous month.
The Labor Department's Jobless Claims for the week will be published at $8.30 am ET. The consensus is for 890K, while it was up 965K in the previous week.
Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's Manufacturing Index for January will be revealed at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for 12.0, while it was 11.1 in the previous month.
The Fed Balance Sheet for the week will be released at 4.30 am pm ET. In the prior week, the consensus level was at $7.334 trillion.
The Fed Money Supply for the week is scheduled at 4.30 pm ET. The M2 weekly Money Supply was $107.4 billion.
Asian stocks rose broadly on Thursday. Chinese stocks rose on the day. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index inched up 38.17 points, or 1.07 percent, to 3,621.26, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended down 34.71 points, or 0.12 percent, at 29,927.76.
Japanese shares advanced. The Nikkei average gained 233.60 points, or 0.82 percent, to finish at 28,756.86, a 30-year high. The broader Topix index closed 0.60 percent higher at 1,860.64.
Australian markets rose for the third day. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 climbed 53.30 points, or 0.79 percent, to 6,823.70, while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 56.10 points, or 0.80 percent, at 7,107.10.
European shares are trading higher. Among the major indexes in the region, the German DAX is adding 44.10 points or 0.32 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is gaining 6.38 points or 0.10 percent.
The Swiss Market Index is adding 36.90 points or 0.34 percent.
The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is up 0.26 percent.
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