After moving mostly lower over the course of the previous session, stocks are likely to move back to the upside in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 50 points.
Traders may look to buy on the modest drop that was seen on Thursday, which reflected some disappointing U.S. economic data as well as worries about the Federal Reserve paring back its asset purchase program.
Buying interest has also been generated by a report from the Conference Board showing that its leading economic indicators index for China rose 1.5 percent in April following a 0.6 percent drop in March. Four of the six components contributed positively to the index.
Andrew Polk, resident economist at the Conference Board China Center in Beijing, said, "The LEI for China rebounded in April primarily due to renewed real estate activity and credit expansion. But both factors remain major wild cards for growth."
Not long after the start of trading on Wall Street, the Conference Board is scheduled to release a separate report on leading economic indicators in the U.S.
Economists expect the Conference Board's leading economic index to rise by 0.3 percent in April after edging down by 0.1 percent in March.
Reuters and the University of Michigan are also scheduled to the release the preliminary reading on their consumer sentiment index for May. The index is expected to climb to 78.0 in May from 76.4 in April.
Meanwhile, a negative reaction to quarterly results from Dell (DELL) may limit any early upside on Wall Street, with the PC maker moving modestly lower in pre-market trading.
After the close of trading on Thursday, Dell reported much weaker than expected first quarter earnings, although it revenues came in above expectations.
After seeing modest strength earlier in the session, stocks came under pressure going into the close of trading on Thursday. A disappointing batch of U.S. economic data weighed on the markets along with comments from a Federal Reserve official.
The major averages ended the day in negative territory, with the Dow and the S&P 500 pulling back off record highs. The Dow dipped 42.47 points or 0.3 percent to 15,233.22, the Nasdaq edged down 6.37 points or 0.2 percent to 3,465.24 and the S&P 500 fell 8.31 points or 0.5 percent to 1,650.47.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 25 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index surged up by 1.4 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has risen by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are both up by 0.3 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.54 to $95.70 a barrel after rising $0.86 to $95.16 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, gold futures are sliding $15.20 to $1,371.70 an ounce. In the previous session, the precious metal fell $9.30 to $1,386.90 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 102.58 yen compared to the 102.26 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.2828 compared to yesterday's $1.2882.
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