RTRS: U.S. stock index futures point to rebound; data eyed
* U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday, reversing the previous session's dip, while investors braced for a reading of consumer confidence for insight on the extent of the damage from the economic downturn.
* Stocks of automakers will be in the spotlight again after Washington expanded its bailout of the U.S. auto industry on Monday, saying it was buying $5 billion in equity in auto and mortgage finance company GMAC and increasing a loan to General Motors (GM.N) by $1 billion [nN29320920].
GM shares in Frankfurt (GM.F) traded up 11 percent while Ford (F.N) shares in Frankfurt (F.F) were up 9.8 percent.
* At 0917 GMT S&P 500 March futures SPc1 were up 0.9 percent, Dow Jones futures DJc1 were up 0.8 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures NDc1 were up 1.2 percent.
* The Conference Board's consumer confidence index for December is expected to show another marginal increase, thanks mainly to falling gasoline prices, after a record low in October. The market expects a reading of 45.0, up from 44.9 in November and a record low of 38.8 in October, according to the median forecast of 62 economists polled by Reuters.
* Also on Tuesday, the National Association of Supply Management Chicago purchasing management index (PMI) for December is likely to show that business activity remained weak in the U.S. Midwest in December.
* Oil slid below $40 on Tuesday as demand worries eclipsed Middle East crude supply concerns amid the Israeli-Hamas conflict, with prices on track to end the year down 60 percent, their biggest annual loss on record.
* Japan reportedly considered a $110 billion scheme to buy bad loans from banks, the latest in a string of government moves aimed at reducing the damage from the worst downturn since the 1930s.
* The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI slipped 31.62 points on Monday, or 0.37 percent, to 8,483.93. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX fell 3.38 points, or 0.39 percent, to 869.42. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC dropped 19.92 points, or 1.30 percent, to 1,510.32.
* U.S. stock markets trade normally on Wednesday, while the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association recommends a 1400ET/1900GMT close for bond trading. (Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by David Cowell)
