LONDON (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks-futures indexes turned slightly higher on Friday as General Electric announced a comprehensive restructuring plan, including a sale of the bulk of its financial business and a hefty stock repurchase initiative. Earlier in the premarket session, futures traded with small losses, ahead of a Jeffrey Lacker speech that could shed more light on the Federal Reserve’s timing of the first rate hike. Apple was also in the spotlight as the tech giant kicked off preorders of its Apple Watch. A 3.1% premarket gain for General Electric Co. GE, +8.63% helped send the benchmarks higher, after the conglomerate said it would sell the bulk of GE Capital and launch a $50 billion stock buyback. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average YMM5, +0.18% rose 34 points, or 0.2%, to 17,923, while those for the S&P 500 index ESM5, +0.16% added 3.5 points, or roughly 0.2%, to 2,089. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index NQM5, +0.02% were basically flat at 4,400. U.S. stocks were on track to close out the week in positive territory, even after a volatile week with a mixed message from the Fed, the unofficial kickoff of the earnings season and M&A optimism pulling the market in different directions. Lacker speech: Capping off the choppy week, the Fed and its rate-hike consideration remain on the forefront of investors’ minds.. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker, who is a voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee this year, will give a speech on the economic outlook in Sarasota, Fla., at 8:45 a.m. Eastern Time and investors will closely be watching for hints as to when the central bank might start to tighten policy. Lacker, who is considered one of the most hawkish members of the Fed, said in late March that he sees a “strong� case for a rate hike in June. However, that was before the nonfarm payrolls report for March significantly missed expectations, leaving investors to watch for cues if Lacker’s liftoff mood has shifted. The minutes from the Fed’s March meeting — also held before the disappointing jobs report — showed several central bank officials thought June was an appropriate time for a rate hike. Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota — a non-voter this year — is due to speak at the Minnesota Credit Union annual meeting in Bloomington, Minn., at 12:20 p.m. Eastern. The ICE dollar index DXY, +0.62% pitched 0.4% higher to 99.56 ahead of the speeches, closing in on the 100-mark and reaching the highest level in three weeks. Data: The import-price index for March is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, expected to show a drop of 0.2%, according to economists polled by FactSet. The Federal budget for March comes out at 2 p.m. Eastern. Stocks to watch: Shares of Apple Inc. AAPL, -0.43% fell 0.7% ahead of the bell as the company kicked off its online preorder period for the Apple Watch. Starting on April 24, the watch will also be available at stores in big cities including Colette in Paris, Dover Street Market in London, Tokyo, Maxfield in Los Angeles and The Corner in Berlin. Shares of Citrix Systems Inc. CTXS, -6.43% fell 6.4% after the software company late Thursday lowered its first-quarter profit and sales outlook. Ruby Tuesday Inc. RT, +0.33% could also move after the restaurant chain late Thursday said sales for the fiscal fourth quarter and full-year same-restaurant sales were likely to be flat or to decline 1%. Other markets: European stocks continued their march higher, with the Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, +0.62% and Germany’s DAX 30 index DAX, +1.47% on track for record closing highs. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index NIK, -0.15% briefly rose above 20,000, but closed almost 100 points shy of the milestone. Metals GCM5, +0.79% mostly rose, while oil CLK5, -0.04% declined.

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