US Stock Futures Signal Upbeat Open As Concerns About Weak Global Economic Data Seem To Recede; Data On Existing Homes Sales, Earnings Should Guide Investors

The market's direction on Friday could be dictated by data on existing home sales and corporate earnings, following a somber week that gave way to some positivity in the previous session as investors shrugged off concerns stemming from worrisome global economic data points.

On Friday, futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.19 percent and futures on the S&P 500 were up 0.16 percent while those on the Nasdaq were up 0.12 percent. On Thursday, the Dow closed 0.58 percent up while the S&P 500 rose 0.6 percent and the Nasdaq climbed 0.7 percent.

On the earnings front, Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ:DISH) is among those scheduled to declare earnings before markets open. On the data front, numbers on existing home sales for January is scheduled to be released at 10 a.m. EST

In Europe, stocks were slightly up with the Stoxx Europe 600 index trading up 0.16 percent while the FTSE 100 was up 0.13 percent. Germany’s DAX-30 was down 0.04 percent and France's CAC-40 was up 0.16 percent.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei-225 climbed 2.88 percent down while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.49 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.78 percent while the Shanghai Composite was down 1.17 percent. South Korea’s Kospi was up 1.41 percent, while India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.8 percent.