US futures climb ahead of ECB

New York - US stock index futures advanced on Thursday, indicating the S&P 500 may rise for a third straight session ahead of a European Central Bank rate decision and data on the US labor market.

* The central bank is expected to keep rates unchanged, and the market will give more attention to comments from ECB President Mario Draghi, who will give his views on the region's growth prospects and faces tough questions over the euro's sharp rise and his connection to an Italian banking scandal.

* Economic data due at 8:30 a.m. (15:30 SA time) includes weekly jobless claims and preliminary fourth quarter productivity and unit labor costs. Initial claims are expected at 360,000 compared with 368,000 in the prior week. Estimates call for a 1.3 percent fall in productivity while unit labor costs are expected to rise 3.0 percent.

* Recent data has pointed to a modest improvement in the economy, but one without enough strength to cause the Federal Reserve to back off its easy monetary policy, helping the benchmark S&P index climb 6 percent for the year.

* S&P 500 futures rose 2.9 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 25 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 3.25 points.

* Visa Inc's quarterly profit beat analysts' estimates for the ninth consecutive quarter as credit, debit and transactions grew at the world's largest payments network.

* Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc lost 4.7 percent to $46.63 in premarket after forecasting sales growth for the current quarter that was slightly lower than analysts expected.

* According to Thomson Reuters data through Wednesday morning, of 301 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings, 68.1 percent have exceeded analysts' expectations, above a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters. In terms of revenue, 65.8 percent of companies have topped forecasts.

* Looking ahead, fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are now expected to grow 4.7 percent, according to the data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.

* Retailers will also be eyed as they report monthly sales results. Costco Wholesale Corp posted a 4 percent rise in comparable sales in January, marginally above analysts estimates, despite the largest US warehouse operator having one less sales day in the reporting period.

* European shares were little changed after sharp falls the previous day, with any recovery capped by mixed earnings and concerns about economic and political developments in the euro zone.

* Asian shares and the euro paused from recent gains as investors awaited the European Central Bank's policy meeting later in the day and Draghi's view on euro zone growth prospects. - Reuters