Futures Rise Amid Spain Bailout Optimism
U.S. stock index futures were higher Tuesday amid expectations the Spanish government will soon request a bailout, a step necessary to alleviate the euro zone's debt crisis.
Spain is expected to request a bailout as early as next weekend, although Germany is urging Spain to wait, according to a Reuters report. Economic woes in the country continued to weigh as the latest jobs figures showed unemployment rose again last month.
Stocks initially opened higher Monday as investors cheered a better-than-expected ISM manufacturing report, but eventually retreated to end mixed after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke expressed his lingering concerns about economic growth in the U.S.
Earlier, the Reserve Bank of Australia kicked off this week’s central bank meetings, surprising the markets by cutting its benchmark rate to 3.25 percent. The Australian dollar fell to a four week-low.
The European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan all meet later this week.
No major U.S. economic reports are scheduled Tuesday, but automakers including GeneralMotors , Ford and Toyota are poised to post monthly auto sales throughout the day.
JPMorgan was flat after the New York State Attorney General’s office filed a lawsuit against the bankover mortgage-backed securities.
Citigroup gained after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded the financial giant to "outperform" from "market perform" and lifted its price target to $44 from $40.
Boeing union members rejected a contract offerfor labor agreements covering 23,000 workers, and plan to resume talks Tuesday.
PetSmart gained after S&P announced the pet-products retailer will become the newest component of the S&P 500 Index, replacing Sunoco after the close on October 4.
Express tumbled after the clothing retailer cut its third-quarter profit forecast, citing an "an abrupt change in traffic" last month.
—By CNBC’s JeeYeon Park (Follow JeeYeon on Twitter: @JeeYeonParkCNBC)
Coming Up This Week:
TUESDAY: Monthly auto sales
WEDNESDAY: Weekly mortgage apps, ADP employment report, ISM non-mfg index, oil inventories, H-P analysts mtg; Earnings from Family Dollar, Monsanto, Marriott
THURSDAY: Chain-store sales, Challenger job-cut report, jobless claims, factory orders, FOMC minutes
FRIDAY: Non-farm payrolls, consumer credit
More From CNBC.com: