U.S. stock futures pointed to a slight rise Thursday as markets struggled to push beyond the advance registered after the Federal Reserve's surprise move to buy government bonds. S&P 500 futures rose 3.3 points to 794.90 and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 4 points to 1,216.70. U.S. stocks rose, and government bonds surged, on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve's move to buy long-term Treasury bonds. The Fed said it will buy up to $300 billion in longer-term Treasurys and raise the size of lending programs already aimed at reducing mortgage rates by another $750 billion. The commitment to buy Treasury securities and additional mortgage-related debt should mean lower rates for a variety of business and consumer loans. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 90 points, the S&P 500 added 16 points and the Nasdaq Composite rose 29 points. "On the one side, this is clearly positive news as the measures will help stabilizing the housing market and therefore will have a positive impact especially for banks," said credit analysts from Germany's Landesbank Baden-Wurttemberg. "However, on the other side, the question is at what price? Bottom line is the Fed is adding a trillion dollars to their balance sheet. In the long run, the price for these massive rescue measures might be inflation as once the economy recovers the Fed might be not able to raise interest rates quickly enough." Gold futures rallied, up over $54 to $943.40 an ounce. Oil futures were trading at nearly $51 a barrel, and the dollar fell vs. the Japanese yen. Thursday's calendar includes weekly jobless claims, the Philly Fed manufacturing survey for March and the leading economic indicators for February. On the corporate side, FedEx reported third-quarter earnings below market estimates and guided to a fiscal fourth quarter that also will be below estimates. FedEx slipped 3% in pre-market trade. Nike may see pressure, as it did in after-hours trade on Wednesday, as investors looked past the stronger-than-forecast earnings and to the sneaker maker's declining order book. Oracle rose 7% in pre-open trade after recording a 1% profit fall and announcing its first-ever dividend. "This better-than-expected set of numbers and guidance, plus a first ever dividend, could spur a relief rally for the shares down 8% over the last month," said analysts from Societe Generale. Alcoa advanced 3.5% on a J.P. Morgan upgrade to overweight. Citigroup continued to rally from its lows around the $1 mark, up over 8% after saying it's planning a reverse stock split. In Europe, insurers paced an advance as investors on the Continent had their first opportunity to react to the Fed news. Asian markets were mixed, with the Nikkei 225 down 0.3% in Tokyo while the Australian S&P/ASX 200 rose 1%.

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