MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks: Futures Up Ahead Of ECB, Jobless Claims

By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

Mylan, Orbitz to report ahead of the bell

Mylan, Orbitz to report ahead of the bell

MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Stock futures moved modestly higher on Thursday, but overall direction could be up in the air until the market learns the outcome of a European Central Bank meeting, while weekly jobless claims may also provide a little focus.

Mylan Inc. (MYL) and Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (OWW) will report ahead of the opening bell.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4) rose 22 points to 16,417, while the S&P 500 index (SPU4) gained 4.2 points to 1,919.10. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index (NDU4) tacked on 4 points to 3,873.25.

Weekly jobless claims data will be released at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Economists polled by MarketWatch expect initial jobless claims to edge up to 305,000 in the seven days ended Aug. 2, from 302,000 in the prior week. If claims stay low, that will be taken by some as a sign that companies plan to hire modestly and avoid big layoffs.

At 3 p.m. Eastern Time, the Federal Reserve will report on consumer credit for June.

European questions

Investors are likely to be a bit hesitant until the results of an ECB meeting. Wall Street put on a lackluster performance on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 index (SPX) finishing flat at 1,920.23 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) inched up 0.1% to 16,443.34. Also: A big week for IPOs could have sparked last week's S&P selloff.

The ECB isn't expected to make any major changes in policy, but analysts will be looking for President Mario Draghi to use his monthly news conference to elaborate on the rate cuts of two months ago. The central bank's decision on interest rates is scheduled for 7:45 a.m. Eastern Time, with the press conference at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. See ECB preview: The charts that should keep Mario Draghi up at night

The Q&A session is expected to be dominated by questions about the impact of sanctions on Russia to the euro zone, as well as worrying developments in some of the region's biggest economies, such as Germany. Adidas AG posted a 16% profit drop and said it won't meet its 2015 profit outlook.

Russian President Vladimir Putin fired back at Western sanctions on Wednesday, ordering bans on imports of food and other products from countries that imposed the restrictions.

European stocks had trouble getting started, with the main Stoxx 600 index flat. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 1.3% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell to its lowest settlement in nearly two weeks as casino shares dropped.

Corporate front

Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc.(GMCR) may follow up a late-session loss with more downside in premarket trading. The coffee company reported quarterly sales below estimates.

Priceline Group Inc.(PCLN) said after the close of markets on Wednesday that it plans to take a $500 million stake in Ctrip.com International Ltd. (CTRP), China's largest online travel company. The two companies already have a commercial agreement.

In other markets, gold prices (GCU4) pulled back but held above the $1,300-an-ounce level, while oil (CLU4) eased off and the dollar (DXY) inched higher.

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