RTRS: Futures point to firmer Wall St open after CIT deal
* U.S. stock index futures were higher, pointing to a firmer start on Wall Street on Monday, with both the Dow Jones futures DJc1 and the S&P 500 futures SPc1 up 0.3 percent by 0756 GMT, and the Nasdaq futures NDc1 up 0.2 percent.
* CIT Group Inc's (CIT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) board signed off on a deal late on Sunday to receive $3 billion in rescue financing from a group of bondholders, in a plan the lender hopes will allow it to avoid bankruptcy, a source close to the situation said. [ID:nLK681637]
Shares in the company, which lends to nearly one million small and mid-sized businesses, in Frankfurt (CITP.F: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) soared nearly 53 percent.
* Texas Instruments (TXN.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is expected to post an earnings per share of 23 cent in the second quarter, according to a survey of 18 analysts. That compared with an EPS of 44 cents in the corresponding period of last year.
* Legg Mason (LM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is expected to report an EPS of 22 cents when it releases its quarterly results, according to 12 analysts. It posted an EPS of -22 cents in the same period last year.
* M&T Bank Corp MTB, Halliburton HAL, Boston Scientific Corp BSX and Hasbro Inc HAS are also due to report their quarterly earnings on Monday.
* Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co [KKR.UL] on Monday moved a step closer to merging with its Euronext-listed fund after receiving approval from the board of the fund to combine businesses. [ID:nN20540573]
* Barnes & Noble Inc (BKS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) consolidated its publishing operations, as the nation's biggest bookstore chain hunts for efficiencies amid a severe downturn in the industry, the Wall Street Journal said.
* Human Genome Sciences Inc HSGI.O said its experimental drug to treat lupus was successful in a late-stage clinical trial, a likely shock to many on Wall Street who had written the drug off as dead. [ID:nN19341930]
* Shares of Goldman Sachs (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) could rise to between $175 and $200 in the next year if the investment banking firm can continue to report quarterly profits of $4 to $5 a share, Barron's said, citing analyst predictions. [ID:nN19534836]
* Oil CLc1 rose above $64 a barrel, extending last session's 2.5 percent gains, bolstered by a rally in Asian stocks and fall in the dollar on hopes of a global economic recovery. [O/R]
* U.S. White House Director Peter Orszag said on Sunday that second-quarter U.S. gross domestic product figures are likely to be better than the first quarter, showing some signs of improvement in the economy.
* The U.S. recession's grip on the economy appears to be easing but likely has not yet ended, according to a survey of economists released on Monday. [ID:nN17480378]
* The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was up 0.9 percent at 878.34 points. The index is up around 35 percent since hitting its lifetime low on March 9.
* U.S. stocks closed out their best week in four months on Friday on a flat note as strong earnings from IBM (IBM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) softened the blow of disappointing results from General Electric Co (GE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).
* The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI gained 32.12 points, or 0.37 percent, to 8,743.94. But the Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX dipped out 0.36 of a point, or 0.04 percent, to 940.38. And the Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC added 1.58 points, or 0.08 percent, to 1,886.61. (Reporting by Dominic Lau; Editing by Mike Nesbit)
