WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks are likely to move to the upside in early
trading on Thursday, extending the rally seen over the course of the previous
session. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher
open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.

The futures turned positive following the release of a highly anticipated Labor
Department report showing consumer prices in the U.S. unexpectedly edged
slightly lower in the month of June.

The Labor Department said its consumer price index slipped by 0.1 percent in
June after coming in unchanged in May. Economists had expected consumer prices
to inch up by 0.1 percent.

The unexpected dip by consumer prices came as another steep drop by gasoline
prices more than offset a continued increase in shelter costs.

Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices crept up by 0.1 percent
in June after rising by 0.2 percent in May. Core prices were expected to
increase by another 0.2 percent.

The report also said the annual rate of consumer price growth slowed to 3.0
percent in June from 3.3 percent in May. Economists had expected the pace of
price growth to decelerate to 3.1 percent.

The annual rate of core consumer price growth also slowed to 3.3 percent in June
from 3.4 percent in May. The pace of growth was expected to remain unchanged.

The slowdowns by annual price growth are likely to add to optimism the Federal
Reserve will lower interest rates as soon as its September meeting.

Meanwhile, a separate report released by the Labor Department showed first-time
claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by much more than expected in the
week ended July 6th.

The report said initial jobless claims slid to 222,000, a decrease of 17,000
from the previous week's revised level of 239,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to edge down to 236,000 from the 238,000
originally reported for the previous week.

Following the lackluster performance seen during Tuesday's session, stocks moved
sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Wednesday. With the strong
upward move, the S&P 500 closed above 5,600 for the first time ever.

The major averages saw further upside going into the close, ending the day near
their highs of the session. The Nasdaq surged 218.16 points or 1.2 percent to
18,647.45, the Dow shot up 429.39 points or 1.1 percent to 39,721.36 and the S&P
500 jumped 56.93 points or 1.0 percent to 5,633.91.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly
higher during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.9
percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.1 percent and Hong
Kong's Hang Seng Index spiked by 2.1 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the
U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has risen by 0.3 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the
German DAX Index are both up by 0.6 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.44 to $82.54 a barrel
after advancing $0.69 to $82.10 a barrel on Wednesday. Meanwhile, after rising
$11.80 to $2,379.70 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are surging
$28.80 to $2,408.50 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 159.00 yen versus the
161.69 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Wednesday. Against the
euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0892 compared to yesterday's $1.0830.



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