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.
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.
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