By Barbara Kollmeyer U.S. stock market futures were pushing for a positive start for Wall Street on Wednesday, inspired by a surprise trade deficit for China, while investors prepared for the release of minutes from the latest Federal Open Market Committee meeting. About three hours before the start of trading, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 28 points to 14638. The S&P 500 futures increased 3.3 points to 1566.50, and Nasdaq-100 futures gained 8.25 points to 2805.75. Changes in futures don't always accurately predict early market moves after the opening bell.Lifting Europe and most Asia stocks and underpinning futures was news that China swung to a trade deficit in March, missing forecasts calling for a surplus of $14.7 billion, as imports surged and exports rose at a smaller amount than expected. The data support signs domestic consumption in China is rising. The U.S. is devoid of data Wednesday, but markets will be glued to the release of the minutes of the March 19-20 Fed meeting. A lengthy discussion of the Fed's bond-buying program is expected to revealed in those minutes, which can surprise investors. Analysts said markets will zero in on any indications of future plans for the Fed's quantitative-easing program. On Tuesday, James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Fed and a voting member of the FOMC, said he's willing to cut the Fed's easing program in small quantities. It is a view he has voiced before, but this time it was in the wake of weak jobs data last week. After climbing to an all-time intraday high, the Dow industrials finished at a record closing high of 14673.46, a gain of 59.98 points. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose to within a few points of its intraday record of 1576.09 set Oct. 11, 2007. It closed up 5.54 points to 1568.61, just a few points below its record finish set April 2. Henrik Drusebjerg, senior strategist at Nordea Bank, said bank earnings due out Friday will be "very important. To see how markets will be moved by whatever's coming out from companies, we need some significant ones," he said. Mr. Drusebjerg also said that markets are looking out for any data points that could tell investors the sequester is hurting the U.S. recovery more than expected. "Everyone got a bit of a scare Friday when they saw those jobs numbers," he said. Earnings season is slowly heating up. Companies reporting ahead of the open Wednesday include Family Dollar Stores Inc., Constellation Brands Inc. and Fastenal Co. Shares of J.C. Penney Co. and Herbalife Ltd. will be watched closely for any signs of rebound after sharp losses in the prior session. Gold prices pulled back after recent advances. Goldman Sachs downgraded its forecast for gold prices for 2013 and 2014, saying "conviction in holding gold is quickly waning." Write to Barbara Kollmeyer at Barbara.Kollmeyer@dowjones.com
Reported by SmartMoney.com 7 hours ago.
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