NEW YORK - Stocks are holding on to recent gains, buoyed by the latest string of earnings reports.

The day's earnings news was generally positive. Ford surprised the market with a second-quarter profit of $2.3 billion, while drugmaker Wyeth, cigarette maker Philip Morris and candy maker Hershey all raised their profit forecasts for the year.

UPS, however, said its second-quarter profit plunged 49 percent as sales tumbled.

Meanwhile, the government says new jobless claims rose more than expected last week, though the report was distorted by the timing of auto plant shutdowns.

In early trading, the Dow Jones industrial average is up 8 to 8,889. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 1 to 955, while the Nasdaq composite index is up 3 to 1,929.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stock futures are pointing to a slightly higher opening Thursday amid a barrage of earnings news.

The rise in futures comes after gains in Asia and amid relatively flat markets in Europe.

The day's earnings news was generally positive, but there were still some reports that were cause for concern.

Ford Motor Co. surprised the market with a second-quarter profit of $2.3 billion due mainly to a huge gain for debt reduction, while drugmaker Wyeth, cigarette maker Philip Morris International Inc. and candy maker Hershey Co. all raised their profit forecasts for the year.

A report from UPS Inc., however, was less upbeat. The world's largest shipping carrier said its second-quarter profit plunged 49 percent as sales tumbled. The company also issued thrid-quarter guidance below analysts' forecast.

Meanwhile, the government reported a bigger-than-expected rise in new jobless claims, though the report was distorted by the timing of auto plant shutdowns.

The Labor Department said the number of new claims for unemployment benefits rose by 30,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 554,000 - above analysts' estimate of 550,000.

However, total unemployment benefit rolls fell to the lowest level since mid-April.

Ahead of the market's open, Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 12, or 0.1 percent, to 8,845. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures added 1.90, or 0.2 percent, to 951.30, while Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 3, or 0.2 percent, to 1,559.50.

After a month of wayward trading, stocks restarted the market's spring rally early last week after companies including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Intel Corp. got earnings season off to a good start with solid reports.