9:10 pm - FKLI - I am thinking of going short until I saw FOMC may cut 50 basis pts on 11 Dec

Stocks tilt to higher open ahead of data

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks headed toward a higher open Wednesday ahead of economic data that some investors hope will support a half-point interest rate cut. Wall Street is waiting for gauges on the service sector, factory orders and worker productivity. All are expected to be closely watched by the Federal Reserve, which meets for the last time this year next Tuesday. It is widely expected central bankers will lower rates to help pump up the economy and head off a recession. However, some investors are betting the Fed will go beyond the generally anticipated quarter percentage point cut, and lower rates by a half point. Investors were also hoping to rebound after two straight sessions of losses. Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 70, or 0.41 percent, to 13,332. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 9.40, or 0.64 percent, to 1,472.40, and the Nasdaq composite index added 13.75, or 0.67 percent, to 2,076.00. Bond prices fell. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.90 percent from 3.88 percent late Tuesday. The dollar was lower against other major currencies, while gold prices rose. OPEC decided Wednesday to keep output ceilings steady for now, in a move that briefly propelled crude prices above $90 a barrel. Wall Street is also waiting for government data that is forecast to show that crude oil inventories fell last week for the third straight week. Light, sweet crude rose $1.09 cents to $89.41 per barrel in premarket electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Fannie Mae has joined rival mortgage financer Freddie Mac in cutting its dividend and selling special stock to raise capital. The government-sponsored lender hopes to cushion against mounting losses from high-risk home loans. Economists expect a report on business activity in the service sector to show slower growth than the previous month, due to pressure in the real estate, financial and shipping sectors. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, will release its index of non-manufacturing business activity for October at 10 a.m. EST. Commerce Department figures are also expected to show factory orders in October were flat as concerns about the nation's economy's health hurt demand for manufactured goods. The data is due out 10 a.m. EST. Investors are also waiting for a government report due to show U.S. worker productivity rose in the third quarter while wage pressures slowed. The Labor Department is scheduled to release its final report of both measures for the July-September quarter at 8:30 a.m. Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed up 0.83 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 1.61 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.11 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.69 percent, and France's CAC-40 increased 0.83 percent.