MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stock Futures Higher After Jobless Claims

By Anora Mahmudova and Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

Weekly jobless claims plunge to lowest level since 2000

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- A much stronger-than-expected weekly jobless claims report gave U.S. stock futures another leg up on Thursday, just as they were running out of steam.

A mixed bag of earnings report left investors undecided about prices, with indexes fluctuating ahead of the opening bell.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJH5) rose 70 points, or 0.4%, to 17,168, while those for the S&P 500 index (SPH5) added 6 points to 1,997. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index (NDH5) gained 6 points, or 0.2%, to 4,130.

Ford Motor Co., McDonald's Corp., Dow Chemical Company shares rallied after beating earnings estimates. Qualcomm Inc, Yahoo and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. shares fell after missing forecasts.

Wednesday's statement from the Federal Reserve's policy-making committee implied a midyear hike is still a possibility. Read by some as hawkish, that view was enough to send Treasurys and the dollar higher, and stocks tumbling. The S&P 500 index(SPX) lost 1.4%, and even the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) fell 0.9% as a big gain by Apple Inc. (AAPL) wasn't enough to keep it in the green.

Panic appeared to be receding somewhat on Thursday, though. "Traders are penciling in June for a rate rise from the U.S. central bank, but if energy prices remain weak, it could be pushed further out," said David Madden, market analyst at IG.

"The U.S. recovery is going to plan, but the Fed's decision will be influenced by factors outside its control," he said in a note.

In economic news, the number of people who applied for U.S. unemployment-insurance benefits plunged 43,000 to 265,000 in the week that ended Jan. 24, hitting the lowest tally in 14 years, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. The decline, the biggest since November 2012, was much larger than expected.

Next up, pending-home sales for December coming at 10 a.m. Eastern.

Corporate moves: McDonald's (MCD) gained over 3% after the fast-food giant announced that President and CEO Don Thompson will retire March 1, and Chief Brand Officer Steve Easterbrook will take his place.

Alibaba (BABA) shares dove 6% in premarket trade after worse-than-expected sales gains.

Ford(F) shares rose 2% after the automaker posted results.

Shares of Facebook (FB) were unchanged after the social-networking company on Wednesday reported results that were slightly above consensus.

Qualcomm Inc.(QCOM) shares skidded another 8% after falling in late trade on an outlook-cut from the chip maker.

Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN) and Google Inc.(GOOG) are coming after the close.

Overseas markets: European stocks came under moderate pressure -- the oil and gas group in particular. Shares of Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA) (RDSB) fell 4% after the company said it plans to cut capital expenditure by about $15 billion over the next three years.

Oil prices (CLH5) were flat after nearing six-year lows, while gold (GCG5) prices fell more than 1% to $1,268.40 an ounce. The dollar (DXY) drifted lower. In Asia, the Nikkei 225 retreated on earnings and Fed rate-hike worries.

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