* Obama says job creation top priority
* P&G, AT&T, 3M and Ford report results
* Jobless claims and durable goods data on tap
* Futures up: Dow 46 pts, S&P 4.7 pts, Nasdaq 7 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click []
(Adds quote and detail on corporate earnings)
By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK, Jan 28 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose
on Thursday in the wake of President Barack Obama's State of
the Union speech, which had no new plans to tighten Wall Street
oversight, and after strong results from Procter & Gamble Co
and Ford Motor Co.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's nomination for
a second term heads for a Senate vote on Thursday, and polls
show he has a majority needed to overcome efforts to block his
appointment. For details see []
In the speech, Obama put job creation at the top of his
agenda and, while pledging tough rules for Wall Street, said he
was "not interested in punishing banks."
He promised not to abandon his struggle to overhaul
healthcare, placing stocks in related sectors in the spotlight.
For details, see []
"There wasn't anything game-changing in the speech and
nothing new that will really impact banks, which is a relief,"
said Barry Ritholtz, director of equity research at Fusion IQ
in New York.
"There's also some relief that the Bernanke vote will soon
be behind us."
Investors also looked to a number of strong corporate
results. Procter & Gamble <PG.N> reported second-quarter
earnings that beat expectations and raised its sales outlook
for the year, and Ford <F.N> gained 2.8 percent to $11.86 after
recording its first full-year profit since 2005.
[] and [].
Dow components 3M Co <MMM.N> and AT&T Inc <T.N> also
reported earnings.
S&P 500 futures rose 4.9 points and were above fair value,
a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account
interest rates, dividends and time to expiration of the
contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 46
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 7 points.
Economic data for Thursday includes weekly initial jobless
claims, which are forecast to fall to 450,000, and December
durable good orders, which are expected to rise 2 percent,
according to a poll of economists by Reuters. The National
Activity index for December is also on tap, with all the data
scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT)
"The expectation is that durable goods could be soft
because of the weak housing market," Ritholtz said. "The
housing data we've seen this week has been weak and weaker, so
its hard to imagine there's going to be a big upside
surprise."
Overseas, Nokia Corp <NOK1V.HE><NOK.N> reported
fourth-quarter earnings and sales that beat expectations.
U.S.-listed shares of the mobile phone maker surged 12 percent
in premarket trading. []
U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday after the Fed pledged to keep
interest rates near zero, and Apple Inc <AAPL.O> unveiled a new
portable computer.
(Editing by Padraic Cassidy)
