US Stock Futures Up As Investors Await Economic Data, Crude Oil Drops To $104.92 a barrel

US stock futures are slightly higher this morning, as investors are awaiting economic data. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 12 points to 12,182, while futures on the S&P 500 index rose 1.3 points to 1,311.30. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 6.75 points to 2,323.75. US stocks closed higher on Friday, with the Dow Jones industrial average gaining 50 points to 12,221, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rising 4 points to 1,314 and the Nasdaq Composite Index climbing 7 points to 2,743. Data on February personal income will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. However, data on pending home sales for February will be released at 10 a.m. ET. Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans is scheduled to speak at the University of South Carolina. Progress Software Corporation

is expected to post its FQ1 EPS at $0.42 on revenue of $134.17 million. Cal-Maine Foods Inc

is projected to post its Q3 earnings at $1.03 per share on revenue of $284.80 million. Concord Medical Services Holdings Ltd

is projected to report its Q4 EPS at $0.12 on revenue of $16.33 million. Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation

is projected to report its Q4 EPS at $0.82 on revenue of $1.37 billion. Novavax Inc

is estimated to report a quarterly loss at $0.09 per share on revenue of $110.00 thousand. Industrial Services of America Inc

is estimated to post its Q4 earnings at $0.29 per share on revenue of $87.05 million. AstraZeneca PLC

raised its earnings per share forecast for 2011 on a lower effective tax rate. The company projects earnings per share in the range of $6.90 to $7.20, compared to its earlier guidance of $6.45 to $6.75. Shares of Alcatel-Lucent

gained about 5.6% in pre-market trading after analysts at Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock from “neutral” to “buy.” Shares of Nokia Corp

rose about 2.8% in pre-market trading after Goldman upgraded the firm from “neutral” to “buy.” Most Asian markets ended lower, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average dropping 0.60%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 falling 0.17% and China's Shanghai Composite gaining 0.21%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.39%. Positive sentiment ruled the European markets today. While STOXX Europe 600 Index has gained 0.02%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 0.10%. Crude oil for May delivery dropped $0.48 to $104.92 a barrel in Globex electronic trading. Gold for May delivery fell $0.10 to $1,431 an ounce. The US dollar gained 0.4% to ¥81.77 against the Japanese yen and dropped to $1.4056 against the euro. Read more