Wall Street Heads Toward Higher Open

Stocks Point Toward Higher Open, Rebounding From Steep Loss Ahead of Fed Minutes, Housing Data

NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. stocks were poised to rebound Tuesday from steep losses a day earlier as investors, relieved about strong results from Hewlett-Packard Co., awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve's last meeting and data on housing starts.
Having swooned Monday due to growing anxiety about upcoming losses at the world's major banks, Wall Street seemed to think its sell-off was overdone, considering that third-quarter earnings outside the financial sector have shown solid growth.
After the closing bell Monday, H-P posted a 28 percent rise in profit that easily surpassed analysts' average forecast. The computer and printer maker also lifted its financial outlook and authorized an additional $8 billion for stock buybacks.
The stock market has been mercurial lately, though. What Fed policy makers said behind closed doors on Oct. 31, when they lowered interest rates by a quarter-point, will be released at 2 p.m. EST and read closely for hints about future rate actions.
In the meantime, investors have more corporate and economic news to digest. The Commerce Department is expected to report that housing starts declined again in October to their lowest level in 15 years, while retailers including Target Corp., Barnes and Noble Inc. and BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. are expected to release earnings.
Homebuilder D.R. Horton Inc. and lender Freddie Mac are also scheduled to report quarterly results.
Dow Jones industrial futures rose 105, or 0.80 percent, to 13,098. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures gained 9.70, or 0.67 percent, to 1,447.20. Nasdaq 100 index futures added 14.00, or 0.69 percent, to 2,042.00.
Crude oil futures for December delivery rose 97 cents to $95.61 a barrel in pre-opening trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The dollar fell against most other major currencies, but edged up against the yen. Gold rose.
Stock markets overseas bounced higher.
In Asian trading, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.12 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index advanced 1.13 percent. In European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 increased 0.50 percent, Germany's DAX index lifted 0.72 percent, and France's CAC-40 gained 0.36 percent.