Futures Point to Wall Street Extending Rally

Stock futures pointed to Wall Street rising Thursday, extending a rally into a third day, on optimism that European policymakers are making progress in their efforts to help shore up troubled banks.

* At 0851 GMT, futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 were up between 0.7 and 0.9 percent.

* The FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of leading European shares was up 1.8 percent at 932.99 points, ahead of interest rate and policy decisions from the European Central Bank and Bank of England.

* The STOXX Europe 600 Banking Index <.SX7P> rose 3.6 percent, extending gains after the European Union's executive proposed member states carry out a co-ordinated recapitalization of banks.

* Shares in Apple fell in early trade on the Frankfurt stock exchange, down more than 3 percent, after co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs died following a long battle with cancer and other health issues.

* Initial jobless claims are expected to rise to 410,000 for the week ended October 1, up from 391,000. Continuing claims are seen rising slightly to 3.72 million from 3.71 million. The data comes ahead of Friday's all-important non-farm payrolls.

* Constellation Brands , the world's largest branded wine maker, will shed light on the state of consumer spending when it reports fiscal second-quarter earnings. Analysts expect a profit of 66 cents per share, up from 52 cents a year ago.

* On Wednesday, U.S. shares rose a second day, continuing a recovery from a slump that had seen the S&P 500 enter bear-market territory.

* The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 1.2 percent; the S&P 500 <.SPX> added 1.8 percent; the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> rose 2.3 percent.

(Reporting by Brian Gorman; Editing by David Hulmes)