US pre-open: Futures higher ahead of jobless claims data

Wall Street futures were firmly in the green ahead of the bell on Thursday after registering heavy losses in the previous session.

As of 1230 GMT, Dow Jones futures were up 0.61%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.71% and 1.11% firmer, respectively.

The Dow closed 207.68 points lower on Wednesday as market participants digested comments from central bankers and thumbed over more corporate earnings.

Thursday's primary focus will be, as almost always, on the Labor Department's jobless claims report due out at 1330 GMT, with economists expecting to see a weekly rise in initial claims from 183,000 to 190,000.

Scope Markets' James Hughes said: "Wall Street may have faced something of a shake down on Wednesday, but sentiment is looking a little more optimistic after traders digested last night's earnings news.

"Futures suggest the Dow is currently on track to more than recover yesterday’s losses and there's also a general level of support building for the idea that many big tech stocks are moving into oversold territory so could start to attract bargain hunters as they eye the next run higher."

Also drawing an amount of investor attention, Disney shares traded higher in pre-market hours after the entertainment giant posted smaller-than-expected subscriber losses, as well as quarterly earnings and revenues that beat estimates, and announced plans to cut jobs in an effort to lower overheads.

Earnings from Hilton, Ralph Lauren, Kellogg, Expedia, PayPal, Philip Morris, and PepsiCo will all be released on Thursday.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com