* UPS profit tumbles 43 pct
* Jobless claims, leading indicators on tap
* Futures: Dow up 17 pts, S&P 500 up 0.20, Nasdaq off 2.50
* For up-to-the-minute market news, click []
NEW YORK, Oct 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were
mixed on Thursday ahead of leading indicator and jobless data
and a slew of big corporate earnings reports, including UPS,
Amazon.com, 3M, Dow Chemical and Merck.
China's economic growth picked up last quarter as expected,
but the growth rate fell short of more optimistic forecasts.
For details, see []
Travelers Cos Inc <TRV.N>, the largest U.S. publicly traded
property-casualty insurer, said profit jumped fourfold and
approved a new $6 billion share buyback plan. [].
The stock rose 4.2 percent to $50.05 in premarket trade.
Other Dow components reporting earnings included AT&T Inc
<T.N>, up 2.5 percent to $26.60 premarket and Merck & Co Inc
<MRK.N>, up 1.2 percent to $33.08 in light trade, as well as 3M
Co <MMM.N>. [] [] []
United Parcel Service Inc <UPS.N> slipped 0.2 percent to
$57 premarket after reporting earnings fell 43 percent.
[]
McDonald's Corp <MCD.N> added 1.5 percent to $59.20
premarket after the fast-food chain posted third-quarter
earnings and said global comparable sales rose for the quarter.
[]
The Labor Department is to release first-time claims for
jobless benefits at 8:30 a.m. EDT []. Economists
forecast 515,000 in new filings versus 514,000 in the prior
week.
The Conference Board is to report on leading economic
indicators for September at 10 a.m. []. Economists look
for a 0.8 percent rise compared with a 0.6 percent increase in
August.
"The market has risen a bit from the low, and it can't be
supported on just these earnings surprises," said Rick Meckler,
president of LibertyView Capital Management in New York.
"It really needs revenue growth and not just cost cutting,
and for that you need better economic conditions."
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> were up 0.2 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> rose 17
points, and Nasdaq futures <NDc1> slid 2.50 points.
Other key companies to report include American Express Co
<AXP.N>, Amazon.com Inc <AMZN.O> and McDonald's Corp <MCD.N>.
Microsoft Corp <MSFT.O> launched its Windows 7 software on
Thursday in its most important release in more than a decade.
It hopes to win back customers after its disappointing Vista
software in hopes of strengthening the grip on the personal
computer market. The stock added 0.5 percent to $26.70 in
premarket trade. [].
European stocks were broadly lower early Thursday, with
Ericsson's <ERICb.ST> poor results hitting technology shares.
[]
Asian shares also fell amid disappointment over the China
economic data, but the dollar gained some respite as an
expected shift to higher-yielding currencies failed to
materialize. []
China's economic growth picked up last quarter as expected,
but the growth rate fell short of more optimistic forecasts.
For details, see []
U.S. stocks fell Wednesday, hurt by a late sell-off in
financial issues after an influential bank analyst recommended
unloading Wells Fargo & Co <WFC.N> shares. A
wider-than-expected loss from Boeing Co <BA.N> also
disappointed investors.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> dropped 92.12
points, or 0.92 percent, to end at 9,949.36. The Standard &
Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> lost 9.66 points, or 0.89 percent, to
1,081.40. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> shed 12.74 points,
or 0.59 percent, to 2,150.73.
(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; editing by Jeffrey
Benkoe)
