(By Balachander) U.S. stock-index futures trimmed gains as investors digested disappointing jobless claims data and mixed corporate earnings reports.
Mini Dow industrial average futures added 16.00 points to 12,973.00. The Nasdaq Futures gained 7.00 points to 2,701.50. Standard and Poor's 500 futures edged 1.20 points higher to 1,379.50.
On the US economic front, the number of Americans who continued to receive jobless benefits climbed more than forecast, a government data showed. Jobless claims fell 2,000 to 386,000 last week from a revised 378,000, while economists projected 370,000 claims. The four-week moving average for claims - a less volatile measure than the weekly figures - fell 5,250 to 374,750 last week, a data from the Labor Department showed.
Existing home sales data is scheduled for release at 10 am ET.
On the European news front, Spain sold 2.54 billion euros ($3.3 billion) two-year and 10-year bonds, slightly above the maximum target of 2.5 billion euros, while borrowing costs increased.
On Wednesday, U.S. stocks slipped, paring Tuesday's rally, as investors digested weaker-than-forecast quarterly reports from blue-chip U.S. technology companies such as IBM and Intel.
Hot Stocks Of The Day: (MS, BAC, QCOM, EBAY, HGSI, PLCM, FFIV)
In corporate news, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) jumped 5.66 percent in premarket, after posting stronger-than-forecast quarterly earnings driven by solid levels of customer activity and an improved credit environment.
Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC) added 3.36 percent in premarket after the bank's adjusted earnings increased and topped analysts' estimates.
Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq:QCOM) lost 4.68 percent in premarket. The Cell phone chip maker guided third-quarter and raised its full-year EPS forecast, both coming in slightly below consensus.
eBay Inc. (Nasdaq:EBAY) soared 8.95 percent in premarket after the online auction site raised its forecast for the full year following better-than-expected quarterly earnings, helped by strong performance of its PayPal and marketplaces businesses.
EMC Corp. (NYSE:EMC) declined 3.40 in premarket after the company provided muted outlook for 2012. EMC sees adjusted EPS of over $1.70, while analysts' expect $1.75 share.
Human Genome Sciences Inc.