(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stock futures pointed to stronger start on Wednesday after a government release showed that consumer spending rose 0.4% in October. At 8:36 am ET, the S&P 500 futures climbed 7.90 points to 1111. The Dow Jones Industrial average futures advanced 41 points to 10446. The Nasdaq Composite futures rose 10.25 points to 1796.75.  A release by Commerce Department showed that US consumer spending, which accounts for nearly two third of the economy, increased 0.4% in October. Personal income rose 0.2%. Economists expected consumer spending to rise 0.5% and personal income to increase 0.1% in October. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that durable goods order declined 0.6% in October. Economists were looking for a gain of 0.5%. A release by Department of Labor on Thursday showed number of Americans filing first- time claims for unemployment benefits fell to 466,000 in the week ending November 21. Economists expected jobless claims to drop to 500,000.  Early on Wednesday, Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF) announced that its fiscal third-quarter net profit slipped 1% to $43.3 million, or 34 cents a share, from $43.8 million, or 36 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 33 cents a share. Revenue dropped 2.9% to $598.2 million. For the fiscal year Tiffany upped its earnings guidance to a range of $1.88 to $1.98 a share, from a range of $1.65 to $1.75 a share. The company anticipates total worldwide sales to drop around 8%. Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE)  reported Wednesday that it swung to fiscal fourth-quarter net loss of $222.8 million, or 53 cents a share, from net income of $345 million, or 81 cents a share, in the prior-year period. On an adjusted basis, the farm equipment maker earned 23 cents a share. Revenue plunged 30% to $4.7 billion. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, weekly survey mortgage applications were up a seasonally adjusted 9.6% for the week ended Nov. 20 from the week before. On the economic front, University of Michigan/Reuters consumer sentiment data and new home sales data is due for release later in the day. US stocks finished lower on Tuesday after Federal Reserve upped its forecast for economic growth in 2010 but warned that jobless rate would likely remain high next year. European stocks advanced in afternoon trade. At 12:32 pm London time, the UK FTSE gained 29.93 points or 0.56% to 5,353.89. The German DAX and French increased 0.48% and 0.63% respectively.  Asian stocks finished up. The Nikkei 225 rose 40.06 points or 0.43% to 9,441.64. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong jumped 188.66 points or 0.84% to 22,611.80. NYMEX crude oil for December delivery declined as much as 3 cents to $76.02 a barrel in electronic trading. Disclosure: Author doesn't own any of the stocks discussed here.