Futures higher as earnings season kicks off

[April 11, 2016]  By Abhiram Nandakumar

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were higher on Monday as investors brace for the corporate earnings season, with Alcoa set to post first-quarter results after the market closes.

* Big bank earnings are on the cards through the week, starting with JPMorgan Chase & Co on Wednesday.

* Expectations are low for profit growth as companies struggle with a weak global economy, low commodity prices and the strengthening dollar.

* Earnings at S&P 500 companies are expected to have declined 7.6 percent on average in the first quarter, according to Thomson Reuters data.

* Investors are still waiting for a clearer picture on monetary policy, with U.S. Federal Reserve appearing more cautious on rate hikes than the market had expected.

* U.S. President Barack Obama will meet with Yellen on Monday to discuss the economy and Wall Street reform, the White House said on Sunday.

* Oil, which has mostly driven the direction of the stock market this year, was little changed ahead of a planned meeting by producers aimed at freezing output. [O/R]

* Wall Street closed higher on Friday, but were still down for the week as a rally in crude did little to boost sentiment.

* New York Fed President William Dudley, who is a permanent voting member of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, is due to speak later in the day.

* Yahoo shares were up 1.4 percent at $36.58 premarket after the parent company of Britain's Daily Mail said it was in talks with potential partners to mount a bid for the company's Internet assets.

* Home Depot was up 1 percent at $135 after Goldman Sachs raised its price target on the stock.

Futures snapshot at 6:45 a.m. ET:

* Dow e-minis  were up 72 points, or 0.41 percent, with 29,632 contracts changing hands.

* S&P 500 e-minis  were up 8.75 points, or 0.43 percent, with 208,344 contracts traded.

* Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 20 points, or 0.45 percent, on volume of 29,775 contracts.

(Reporting by Abhiram Nandakumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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