Futures rally as Ukraine-Russia tension eases

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rallied on Tuesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops involved in a military exercise near the Russian border with Ukraine back to their bases, easing East-West fears of a possible war in the region.

Putin said there was no need to use military force in the Crimea region of Ukraine for now, a day after Russian stocks, bonds and currency were hammered by the nation's military move on the peninsula.

The geopolitical tension triggered a run for investment safety on Monday, with gold, the U.S. dollar and Treasuries prices up and stocks around the world lower. The move was partly reversing on Tuesday.

The turbulent situation in Ukraine set the ground for volatile trading ahead.

S&P 500 e-mini futures rose 19 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 rose 170 points and Nasdaq 100 futures added 40 points.

The sharp gains in futures indicated the S&P 500 would be trading near record high levels.

Shares of RadioShack Corp tumbled 21 percent in premarket trading after the struggling retailer said it would close up to 1,100 stores in the United States after a huge drop in sales over the holidays.

Dish Network and Walt Disney Co reached a long-term deal, allowing the No.2 satellite TV provider to carry Disney-owned networks such as ABC and ESPN, and deliver the content outside of a traditional TV subscription. Disney shares rose 1.1 percent in light premarket trading.

(Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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