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U.S. stock futures rise ahead of Goldman, data
MADRID (MarketWatch) — U.S. stock futures pushed higher on Wednesday as the market awaited a slew of earnings from the financial sector, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., and data such as producer prices.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJ2H +0.41% rose 51 points to 12,471. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 index SP2H +0.34% climbed 6.2 points to 1,295.50 and those on the Nasdaq Composite ND2H +0.57% were up 13.50 points to 2,403.25.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stock-futures-rise-ahead-of-goldman-data-2012-01-18

A heavy schedule of earnings reports is awaiting investors for Wednesday. Among the highlights will be Goldman Sachs GS +0.30% . The financial services group is expected to report a fourth-quarter profit of $1.28 a share on revenue of $6.73 billion, according to a FactSet Research poll of analysts.

Also reporting ahead of the bell will be Northern Trust Corp. NTRS -0.05% , PNC Financial Services Group Inc. PNC +0.07% , Charles Schwab Corp. SCHW +0.08% and State Street Corp. STT +0.09% .

EBay Inc. EBAY +0.49% will report after the market closes.

Shares of Yahoo Inc. YHOO +2.85% could be in focus after the Internet group said late Tuesday that its co-founder Jerry Yang is leaving.

Shares of Linear Technology Corp. LLTC +8.27% could gain in pre-open trade. Shares jumped around 9% in after-hour’s trading Tuesday after a strong revenue outlook released by the company.

U.S. stocks finished higher on Tuesday, but trimmed gains as markets got nervous ahead of the Goldman results, and after mixed results from Citigroup Inc. C +0.23% and Wells Fargo & Co. WFC +0.05% . The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA +0.48% pulled back from a 151-point gain to close up 60.01 points, or 0.5%, to 12,482.07.

Away from corporate news, economic data due Wednesday include December producer prices at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time, December industrial production at 9:15 a.m and home-builder sentiment for January at 10 a.m.

Stocks traded in a narrow range in Europe, led by gains in German and French bourses. Germany reportedly saw strong cover and record-low yields at a sale of short-term paper. The Stoxx Europe 600 index XX:SXXP -0.04% was flat at 253.39.

Greece will be a focal point for Europe and global investors as negotiators head back to the table to try and crank out a deal with the nation’s creditors.

Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said the country may pass legislation forcing through private-sector haircuts if a deal cannot be reached, in an interview with the New York Times that published Wednesday. There were mixed media reports Wednesday on the potential for success at the negotiations.

Elsewhere, Bloomberg reported that the International Monetary Fund is exploring ways to expand its lending fund by $1 trillion.

Asia stocks were volatile, with Tokyo and Hong Kong higher, but mainland China stocks down on concerns Beijing would not ease its monetary policy too aggressively.

Gold prices were flat after Tuesday's gains, fueled by stronger-than-expected China growth data.

Crude-oil prices for February delivery CL2G +0.79% rose 79 cents to $101.49. The International Energy Agency said Wednesday that it expects global oil demand to grow by 1.1 million barrels a day in 2012, lower than its prior estimate of 1.3 million barrels a day.

The dollar index DXY -0.42% , a measure of the U.S. unit’s value compared to six other currencies, slipped to 80.634, down from 81.175 late Tuesday in North American trade.