LONDON (MarketWatch) - U.S. stock futures pushed higher Tuesday as the Federal Reserve started a new program designed to improve student loan, credit card and auto loan issuance.
Wobbling through the session, S&P 500 futures rose 11 points to 859.00 and Nasdaq 100 ) futures added 9.25 points to 1,156.20. Dow industrial futures rose 107 points.
The Fed early Tuesday announced its latest program, the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility.
The New York Fed will lend up to $200 billion to holders of AAA-related ABS backed by new and recently originated consumer and small business loans.
"Continued disruption of these markets could significantly limit the availability of credit to households and small businesses and thereby contribute to further weakening of U.S. economic activity," the Fed said.
Tuesday also will feature a number of releases, including the Conference Board's consumer confidence gauge for November, another estimate of the third-quarter GDP in the U.S. as well the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index for September.
Oil futures slipped $2.10 to $52.38 a barrel and the dollar fell 0.6% to 96.47 yen.
Of companies in the spotlight, BHP Billiton ) dropped its $66 billion Rio Tinto takeover bid, citing the deteriorating economy. Rio Tinto shares dropped 40% in London, while BHP rose over 11%.
Starbucks fell 6% after it warned late Monday of an "extremely challenging" fiscal year as it forecast slumping sales.
AXA shaved a quarter off its adjusted earnings estimate for the year, with the insurer blaming market gyrations that have produced fewer asset fees and made it more costly to pay out on annuities.
Analog Devices reported a 47% profit jump but issued a fiscal first-quarter earnings outlook below analyst estimates due to slowing orders and reduced output.
The Nikkei 225 shot up 5.2% in Tokyo after a three-day break. In London, the FTSE 100 rose 1.2%.
U.S. stocks leaped for the second session in a row on Monday after the government guaranteed over $300 billion of Citigroup assets and as President-elect Barack Obama formally introduced his economic team.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 396 points, the S&P 500 added 51 points and the Nasdaq Composite fell 87 points.
