U.S. stock futures erased declines as a report that Russia wants to de-escalate the crisis in eastern Ukraine outweighed increased tensions over Iraq. Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) jumped 4.2 percent as earnings topped forecasts. Monster Beverage Corp. (MNST) climbed 2.5 percent after the maker of energy drinks posted second-quarter earnings that exceeded analysts’ estimates. Zynga Inc. tumbled 8.9 percent after cutting its full-year outlook. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.3 percent to 1,910.70 at 8:31 a.m. in New York, erasing a decline of as much as 0.8 percent. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts climbed 28 points, or 0.2 percent, to 16,349. “The market is looking abroad today--at Russia and Iraq, and with Russia it’s going to be a little bit of relief for the market rather than anything else,� John Manley, who helps oversee about $233 billion as chief equity strategist for Wells Fargo Funds Management in New York, said in a phone interview. “In Iraq, the market is looking at whether this situation will affect the oil flow.� Equity futures jumped after RIA Novosti reported that Russia seeks a de-escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. The news service cited Russian Security Council head Nikolai Patrushev. Futures had retreated earlier as President Barack Obama approved airstrikes in Iraq, and rocket attacks marked the end of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. The S&P 500 fell 0.6 percent yesterday, taking its loss this week to 0.8 percent. The benchmark has dropped 3.9 percent from a record on July 24 as Russia amassed troops along Ukraine’s border and as conflict escalated between Israel and Hamas. Airstrikes Obama said the U.S. will strike militants in Iraq if they move toward the Kurdish city of Erbil, where America has a consulate. Obama also approved a humanitarian effort to drop supplies of food and water to Iraqis trapped on a mountain by fighters from the Islamic State extremist group near Sinjar, close to the border of Syria. Israel’s military said rockets were fired from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip after the three-day cease-fire ended at 8 a.m. local time. Islamic Jihad, a militant group that also operates in Gaza, claimed responsibility for as many as 10 rockets fired after the truce expired. Data today showed the productivity of U.S. workers rose more than projected in the second quarter, rebounding from the biggest drop in more than three decades and helping to restrain labor costs. Nvidia gained 4.2 percent to $18.20 after the maker of mobile-phone chips posted second-quarter adjusted earnings of 30 cents a share. Analysts on average had predicted 26 cents. Monster Beverage Monster Beverage advanced 2.5 percent to $66.70 after reporting quarterly earnings of 81 cents a share. That beat the 75-cent average estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg survey. Zynga dropped 8.9 percent to $2.66 after the online game company posted second-quarter results at the low end of its forecast and cut its full-year outlook after deciding to delay new games. Of the S&P 500 companies that have reported quarterly results so far this season, 75 percent beat analysts’ estimates for profit, while 64 percent exceeded sales projections. To contact the reporters on this story: Elena Popina in New York at epopina@bloomberg.net; Namitha Jagadeesh in London at njagadeesh@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Cecile Vannucci at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net; Lynn Thomasson at lthomasson@bloomberg.net Jeff Sutherland, Will Hadfield

Source