* GM car sales in China jump 28.8 pct in 2010
* Futures up: Dow 48 pts, S&P 3.2 pts, Nasdaq 6.75 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Adds quote, byline, defense sector, updates prices)
By Rodrigo Campos
NEW YORK, Jan 4 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose
on Tuesday as optimism continued to permeate the market ahead
of data on factory orders and car sales.
The climb in futures followed a rise in U.S. stock indexes
on Monday on encouraging signs about the outlook for
manufacturing around the world that prompted investors to
inject new money into equities.
Coming on the heels of recent data pointing to a growing
economic recovery, investors will eye the Commerce Department's
release of November factory orders at 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT),
with economists expecting a drop of 0.1 percent, compared with
a 0.9 percent fall in the prior month.
Monthly auto sales figures will also be closely watched.
Fifteen economists surveyed by Reuters forecast December auto
sales of about 12.3 million on the annualized and seasonally
adjusted basis tracked by the industry.
"The bullish attitude is continuing and probably will
continue as the data points to strong economic growth," said
Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners in
New York.
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> rose 3.2 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> gained 48
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> added 6.75 points.
Monday's rally that had the Dow and S&P reaching new
two-year highs was accompanied by a rise in volume, with more
than 7.7 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange,
the American Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, above the 50-day moving
average. The volume increase may indicate the gains could
extend into Tuesday.
Investors will look into Federal Open Market Committee
minutes from the Dec. 14 meeting for clues on the U.S. central
bank's outlook on the economy. The minutes are due at 2 p.m.
EST. (1900 GMT)
European stocks were up more than 1 percent, with oil major
BP Plc <BP.L><BP.N> up 5.4 percent after Britain's Daily Mail
newspaper reported rival Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> had
considered a takeover bid during the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Asian markets were also broadly higher. []
Mining stocks will be in focus as floods eased in
Australia's major coal mining region, allowing some mines to
slowly resume production although most remained idle. For
details, see [].
Defense sector stocks will also be eyed, with U.S. Defense
Secretary Robert Gates expected to detail about $100 billion in
Pentagon savings and cuts to weapons programs as early as
Thursday. The PHLX defense index <.DFX> hit a seven-month high
on Monday. []
General Motors Co <GM.N> said it sold 2.35 million vehicles
in China in 2010, up 28.8 percent from a year earlier. GM
shares were up 0.9 percent at $37.39 in premarket trading.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
