U.S. stock futures pointed to a slight rise on Friday, with Palm and Sony Ericsson reports reinforcing the worries that have led central banks across the globe to take unprecedented steps to try to help the economy.
After early losses, futures turned mildly higher.
S&P 500 futures rose 2.6 points to 782.70 and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 3 points to 1,206.50. Dow industrial futures added 8 points.
U.S. stocks closed lower on Thursday, with financials seeing profit taking and with airlines feeling pressure as oil prices jumped. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 85 points, the Nasdaq Composite lost 7 points and the S&P 500 fell 10 points.
Both the economic and corporate calendar are light after a week full of drama including the Federal Reserve's surprise decision to buy $300 billion of longer-term Treasurys.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is due to give a speech on the financial crisis, and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is also speaking.
Dean Tenerelli, who manages a European stock fund for T. Rowe Price, said there aren't many good signs for the economy, and based on conversations he's had with companies, expects further bleak earnings reports ahead.
But he still sees opportunity in the stock market.
"If you look at the stock market, we're at historically low valuations," Tenerelli said from Paris, where he's held a number of meetings with companies.
Oil futures dipped 61 cents after Thursday's surge. The dollar rose vs. counterparts, and yields on 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds fell 4 basis points. Yields move in the opposite direction to prices.
Of stocks in the spotlight, Xerox slipped 3% after cutting its first-quarter outlook.
Ericsson dropped 8% as the group's half-owned mobile-phone-making venture with Sony said it could lose as much as 390 million euros before tax, excluding restructuring charges.
Palm also reported trouble on the handset front, as the group reported a loss of $98 million as it continues to work on the launch of its touch-screen Pre smart phone later this year. Palm shares dropped 7%.
Goldman Sachs is due to hold a call to answer questions about its trading relationship with American International Group .
AIG earlier this week reported that Goldman Sachs received $12.9 billion of taxpayer funds as a counterparty.
Overseas, Europe stocks turned higher, up 0.2%.
The Japanese market was closed, and other Asian markets were mixed, as the Hang Seng fell 2.3% while the Shanghai Composite added 0.7%.
