U.S. futures modestly higher ahead of retail sales data; Dow up 0.1%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to modestly higher open on Tuesday, after a key German economic indicator bolstered hopes that the euro zone’s largest economy was recovering and eased fears spurred by a Moody's downgrade of six of the region's nations.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a small gain of 0.1%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.15% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a rise of 0.2%.

Global equities initially came under pressure after ratings agency Moody's downgraded the credit ratings on six European countries, including Spain and Italy late Monday. France and Austria kept their top ratings but had their outlooks dropped to "negative" from "stable."

Moody's also cut its ratings on Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Malta, while warning that it could downgrade the U.K., rekindling contagion worries.

However, market sentiment improved following a report showing that German economic sentiment rose significantly more-than-expected in February, turning positive for the first time since May 2011.

Shares in the financial sector were mixed, as investors continued to monitor developments surrounding Greece. Attention now shifts to a meeting Wednesday of euro zone finance ministers, who will discuss the approval of the debt-laden country’s second bailout before a March 20 deadline.

Bank of America saw shares slump 0.9% in pre-market trade, JP Morgan shares rose 0.9%, while U.S.-listed shares of National Bank of Greece shed 0.5%.

Meanwhile, shares in major U.S. retailers, such as Gap and Macy’s were expected to be active as markets awaited key U.S. retail sales data for January.

In earnings news, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company shares rose 0.85% after swinging to a fourth quarter profit of USD18 million from a loss of USD177 million in the same period a year earlier.

Consumer electronics giant Apple added 0.7% after the Wall Street Journal reported earlier that the company was working with component suppliers in Asia to test a new tablet computer with a smaller screen. Apple shares closed at a record high USD502.60 a shares on Monday.

Boeing shares could be active after it finalized an order from Indonesia's Lion Air for 230 airplanes valued at USD22.4 billion, Boeing's largest ever commercial airplane order.

Other shares in focus include, insurance giant MetLife and social gaming company Zynga, which were both expected to release earnings results later in the day.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were higher. The EURO STOXX 50 rose 0.35%, France’s CAC 40 added 0.25%, Germany's DAX gained 0.4%, while Britain's FTSE 100 eased up 0.15%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index added 0.15%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.6%, after the Bank of Japan unexpectedly announced further stimulus measures to boost growth.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce official data on retail sales, as well as reports on import prices and business inventories.

Also Tuesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was to testify on President Barack Obama’s budget request for fiscal 2013, at the Senate Finance Committee.