US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Bernanke Testimony

US stock futures are higher this morning, ahead of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's testimony before the Senate Banking Committee. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 26 points to 13,814.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 3.10 points to 1,490.30. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 4.25 points to 2,706.50. US stocks closed lower on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling 1.55% to 13,784.17, the S&P 500 index dropping 1.83% to 1,487.85 and the Nasdaq 100 index falling 1.44% to 3,116.25. The FHFA purchase only house price index for December and the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index for December will be released at 9:00 a.m. ET. Data on new home sales for January, the Conference Board's consumer confidence index for February, the Richmond Fed manufacturing index for February and the State Street Investor Confidence Index will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Autodesk ADSK issued downbeat first-quarter earnings forecast. Shanda Games GAME reported a 30% drop in its fourth-quarter profit. AutoZone AZO is projected to report its Q2 earnings at $4.76 per share on revenue of $1.88 billion. The Home Depot HD is expected to report its Q4 earnings at $0.64 per share on revenue of $17.69 billion. RadioShack RSH is projected to post Q4 loss at $0.05 per share on revenue of $1.36 billion. Expeditors International of Washington EXPD is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $0.43 per share on revenue of $1.51 billion. Macy's M is projected to report its Q4 earnings at $1.99 per share on revenue of $9.30 billion. First Solar FSLR is projected to post its Q4 earnings at $1.76 per share on revenue of $1.32 billion. Telephone & Data Systems TDS is estimated to report its Q4 earnings at $0.00 per share on revenue of $1.36 billion. MetroPCS Communications PCS is expected to report its Q4 earnings at $0.11 per share on revenue of $1.28 billion. Edison International EIX is expected to post its Q4 earnings at $1.04 per share on revenue of $2.21 billion. Saks SKS is expected to report its Q4 earnings at $0.15 per share on revenue of $963.14 million. priceline.com PCLN is estimated to post its Q4 earnings at $6.54 per share on revenue of $1.19 billion. Tenet Healthcare THC is expected to report its Q4 earnings at $0.68 per share on revenue of $2.34 billion. European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index fell 1.08%, London's FTSE 100 Index dropped 1.24%, French CAC 40 Index fell 2.30% and German DAX 30 index declined 1.85%. Asian markets ended lower, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average declining 2.26%, China's Shanghai Composite falling 1.40% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropping 1%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 1.32% and India's Sensex fell 1.64%. Gold for delivery in April climbed $7.40 to trade at $1,594.00 an ounce. The ICE dollar index (DXY) dropped 0.25% to trade at 81.69, down from 81.766 in late North American trading on Monday.