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Empresas y finanzas

Stock index futures point to gains; focus on oil


    (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Monday, as a jump in oil prices could buoy energy shares, but volumes were expected to remain thin with few investors at work between the Christmas and New Year breaks.

    At 0910 GMT (4:10 a.m. EST), S&P 500 March futures were up 0.1 percent, Dow Jones futures were up 0.3 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.1 percent.

    Oil gained as much as 5.6 percent to nearly $40 a barrel in the wake of weekend violence between Israel and Hamas, rekindling geopolitical fears surrounding crude supplies from the Middle East.

    Mining shares will also be in focus after copper futures prices in London and Shanghai rose more than 2 percent as traders hunted bargains following gains in oil prices and a fall in the dollar.

    The Chicago Fed Midwest manufacturing index for November was the only piece of macro data expected on Monday, while no S&P 500 company was due to report earnings.

    Dow Chemical will be in the spotlight after Kuwait decided on Sunday to scrap a deal to form a $17.4 billion petrochemical joint venture with Dow, potentially upsetting the largest U.S. chemicals company's plans to buy rival Rohm & Haas .

    The cancellation of the deal, which had met opposition in Kuwait's parliament, was acknowledged by Dow, which had planned to use the proceeds to repay a large part of $13 billion in debt it will have to shoulder once its acquisition of Rohm & Haas closes. Shares in Dow Chemical in Frankfurt were down 4.3 percent, while Rohm & Haas fell 6.3 percent.

    A consortium of private equity and hedge fund firms, including J.C. Flowers & Co, is close to a deal to buy the assets of failed mortgage lender IndyMac, a source familiar with the matter said on Sunday. The consortium would buy the bank and its 33 branches, IndyMac's reverse-mortgage unit and a $176 billion loan-servicing portfolio, the source said.

    U.S. stocks rose on light volume on Friday as energy stocks gained ground alongside oil prices while General Motors advanced after its financing arm qualified for government funds, helping it stave off potential bankruptcy. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 47.07 points, or 0.56 percent, to end at 8,515.55. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index gained 4.65 points, or 0.54 percent, to 872.80. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 5.34 points, or 0.35 percent, to 1,530.24.

    (Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Mike Nesbit)