(By Balachander) U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher opening on the Wall Street ahead of policy statement from the Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).
Mini Dow Industrial Average futures added 42 points to 12,991. The Nasdaq futures gained 14.75 points to 2,651.25. Standard and Poor's 500 futures inched up 4.00 points to 1,378.60.
The ADP National Employment report - a measure of the monthly change in non-farm private employment - showed that U.S. companies added 163,000 jobs last month, topping economists expectations of 120,000 jobs.
The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index for July is due at 10 a.m. ET, with expectations of a reading of 50.4 percent, up from 49.7 percent in June.
The keenly anticipated Fed's latest monetary policy decision will be released at 2:15 pm ET.
On Tuesday, U.S. stocks ended in red as investors awaited policy decisions from the Fed and the European Central Bank amid hopes of monetary intervention by the policy makers to stimulate the global economy.
Hot Stocks Of The Day: CMCSA, EA, DWA, GNW, CECO, MA
In corporate news, Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ:CMCSA) added 2.89 percent in premarket after the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based cable operator reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings amid increases in revenue and cash flow.
Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) jumped 4.81 percent in premarket after the Redwood City, California-based developer of gaming software posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss.
Dreamworks Animation Skg Inc. (NASDAQ:DWA) tumbled 8.33 percent in premarket after the Glendale, California-based maker of 'Shrek' and 'Kung Fu Panda' film series posted quarterly earnings and revenue that trailed market expectations.
Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE:GNW) gained 6.15 percent in premarket after the Richmond, Virginia-based posted second-quarter earnings that fell shot of consensus estimates.
Career Education Corp. (NASDAQ:CECO) plunged 20.59 percent in premarket after the Schaumburg, Illinois-based company reported a quarterly loss amid a 24 percent decline in revenue.
Global Markets:
European markets traded mixed, with Germany's DAX shedding 0.19 percent to trade at 6,759.66. France's CAC40 traded 0.71 percent higher at 3,315.06. U.K.'s FTSE 100 rose 0.93 percent to trade at 5,687.55.
Among Asian markets, China's Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index added 0.94 percent to finish at 2,123.36. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.61 percent to end at 8,641.85. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.12 percent to end at 19,820.38. India's BSE Sensex finished at 17,257.38, up 0.12 percent.
Market Scan:
Ahead of the opening bell, crude oil futures rose 0.39 percent to $88.400 per barrel. Gold futures dropped 0.28 percent to $1,610.0 per ounce.
In the currency market, the euro traded 0.06 percent lower against the U.S. dollar at 1.2297 and the British pound lost 0.31 percent against the greenback to 1.5628. The dollar inched up 0.08 percent against the Japanese yen to 78.1800.