* Oil eases on talk of a production hike
* Boeing reaches deals with Chinese airlines
* Futures: Dow up 22 pts, S&P up 3.3 pts, Nasdaq up 3 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, March 8 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures
advanced on Tuesday as oil prices pulled back on prospects of
an OPEC production hike after recent turmoil in the Middle East
and North Africa.
Brent crude <LCOc1> dipped 0.6 percent to $114.32 a barrel
and U.S. oil futures <CLc1> shed 0.7 percent to $104.70 after
Kuwait's oil minister said OPEC was in discussions to increase
production for the first time in two years. For details, see
[] and [].
Equities have been closely tied to oil prices recently, as
investors worried that consumer spending may be curtailed by
higher oil and gas prices, choking off an economic recovery.
Rebels fighting to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi have rejected
an offer from the Libyan leader to negotiate his exit, even as
they battled to hang on to early gains in the revolt.
[]
"Clearly what investors are hoping for is, the Libya
situation resolves, hopefully with Gaddafi leaving, and that
oil shipments resume. There is a pretty big fear premium in the
price," said Rick Meckler, president of LibertyView Capital
Management in New York.
"To the extent that fear is taken out, you could see prices
drop back to at least a level which doesn't thwart the
recovery."
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> gained 3.4 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 <DJc1> rose 22
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> rose 3 points.
The Nasdaq composite index <> dropped 1.4 percent
Monday and closed just above its 50-day moving average. If the
index falls below that widely followed technical gauge, that
could signal more declines in the technology sector, which had
helped lead a market rally.
Boeing Co <BA.N> sealed deals worth $10 billion with two
airlines in China, the world's fastest growing market, and
could lead to orders for more than 2,000 aircraft over the next
five years. []
Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy Co Inc <BBY.N> said
its China strategy will focus on expanding into inland cities,
where consumption is booming and manufacturing groups are
shifting production. []
European shares gained on Tuesday, recovering from two days
of losses as concerns over the impact of high crude prices on
the economy eased. []
Japan's Nikkei benchmark edged higher as investors covered
short positions after selling heavily on Monday, but analysts
said gains may be limited on concerns about turmoil in the
Middle East and high oil prices. []
(Editing by Padraic Cassidy)
