Stock futures signal upbeat start; Yahoo rallies : US Business

By Amanda Cooper

LONDON (Reuters) - Stock index futures edged up on Friday, suggesting a positive start to trade on Wall Street ahead of data on housing and consumer sentiment.

Yahoo said late on Thursday it had struck an advertising partnership deal with Britain's WPP Group that will let WPP buy ads on Yahoo's online ad exchange.

Yahoo said the deal would first involve WPP units GroupM and 24/7 Real Media and its shares were trading up 1.3 percent from their last close in Frankfurt at 17.90 euros . The stock was the most actively traded stock among major U.S. companies quoted in Germany.

With a light corporate calendar, data on housing starts and early May consumer sentiment will likely provide the focus at least for early trading.

By 6:10 a.m. EDT (1010 GMT) June Dow Jones futures were up 0.19 percent, while Standard & Poor's 500 futures were up 0.21 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.2 percent.

The Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment is due at 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT).

The index is expected to have fallen to 62.0 in early May from 62.6 in late April, making this the worst reading since March 1982, when the economy was plagued by slow growth and high inflation.

But with stocks having performed fairly strongly this week, a negative reading could have limited impact on the market.

"The market seems to be shrugging off all this negative news. If it came in as expected, even though it's bad, I think there will be a limited negative reaction by the market," said IG Index chief markets analyst David Jones.

"Housing starts could be interesting, that one has got potential for un upset again, if it comes in worse than expected, but at the moment we are expecting another strong start (on Wall Street)," he said.

On Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> shot up 94.28 points, or 0.73 percent, to end at 12,992.66. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 14.91 points, or 1.06 percent, to 1,423.57. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC>climbed 37.03 points, or 1.48 percent, to close at 2,533.73.

The S&P is on track for a 2.5 percent gain this week, its best week in a month, while the Nasdaq is on course for a 3.6 percent rise, also its best in a month.

TECH STOCKS SHINE

Tech stocks featured among the most actively traded in Europe on Friday. Intel rose 1.9 percent from its last close in Frankfurt to 16.10 euros , while Dell Inc rose 1.2 percent to 13.40 euros and Cisco Systems shares rose 0.8 percent from their previous close in Germany to 17.09 euros .

Among financials, JPMorgan Chase & Co expects to liquidate or spin off much of the asset management arm of Bear Stearns Cos Inc after it takes over Bear next month, people familiar with the situation said Thursday.

Bear Stearns Asset Management (BSAM), which during the past year generated more bad news than revenues, has about 400 employees and managed $39 billion in investments at the end of February.

On Monday, JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon told a UBS investor conference he expected the bank would close down "big parts of Bear's asset management business."

JPMorgan shares were quoted up 1.8 percent from their previous close in Frankfurt, although on no volume.

Fannie Mae is expected to announce on Friday that it is getting rid of a policy that requires higher down payments on home mortgages in areas where home prices are dipping, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Fannie Mae was not immediately available for comment.

Fannie Mae shares were indicated up 1.2 percent in Frankfurt, although no volume had changed hands.

In a light corporate calendar, Abercrombie & Fitch reports first-quarter earnings.

(Editing by Louise Ireland)

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