U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Tuesday as the corporate earnings season kicked off with J.P. Morgan Chase posting stronger-than-forecast quarterly results.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials eked ahead eight points, early Tuesday to 28,879.
Futures for the S&P 500 dropped two points, or 0.1%, at 3,287.75.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite fell 4.25 points, or 0.1%, to 9,084.
J.P. Morgan Chase posted quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analyst expectations, sending the stock up more than 1.5% in the pre-market. The bank’s annual profits also reached record levels at $36.4 billion.
J.P. Morgan also had a surge in bond-trading revenues during the fourth quarter. Citigroup and Wells Fargo are due to report quarterly numbers later in the morning.
Delta Air Lines also reported better-than-expected earnings, boosted by lower fuel costs and strong travel demand. The results sent Delta shares higher by nearly 4% before the bell.
Despite the strong results from J.P. Morgan and Delta, expectations for the corporate earnings season were low. S&P 500 profits were forecast to fall 2% in the fourth quarter on a year-over-year basis
On the data calendar, the National Federation of Independent Business will release its latest small business survey, followed by new U.S. inflation figures.
Overseas, in Japan, markets returned from a long weekend, with the Nikkei 225 jumping 0.7% in Tokyo, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index retreated 0.2%
Oil prices added 50 cents to $58.58 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices erased seven dollars to $1,543.60 U.S. an ounce.
