By Blaise Robinson
PARIS (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were higher on Tuesday, pointing to further gains on Wall Street following a sharp rally in the previous session, on news of a U.S. plan to inject $250 billion into embattled banks.
By 5:08 a.m. EDT, S&P 500 futures were up 1.1 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.4 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 1.2 percent.
The Nikkei average, which was closed on Monday, leapt more than 14 percent on Tuesday, the biggest one-day gain in its 58-year history, on hopes that bold moves by governments and central banks around the world would unclog the credit market.
"In the short term, markets are reacting positively, but it's hardly surprising given the months we've just had. Looking beyond that, we still have a global recession looming, and the question is: to what extent?" said Edmund Shing, strategist at BNP Paribas, in Paris.
"We're going to continue to get transmission from the financial crisis to the real economy, and we're not really going to find out about the extent of the downturn from companies until they report results at the end of the year."
The Treasury is due to unveil its plan at 8:30 a.m. EDT with about half of the total figure likely to go to the top nine U.S. banks to get them lending to each other again, people familiar with the plan said.
Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke said in an article on the Wall Street Journal's website that the measures, which he did not detail, constituted a broad-based attempt to end the crisis.
"These steps will allow us to restore more normal market functioning and encourage private capital to further support the reinvigoration of financial markets," he wrote.
The Treasury will buy stakes in Bank of America Corp
With no major macroeconomic indicators expected, investors will focus on quarterly results from bellwethers Intel
Energy shares could also benefit from a rise in oil prices, up more than $2 at $83.76 a barrel amid a broad-based commodity rally.
Wall Street rebounded from its worst week ever on Monday with one of its best single sessions ever, as governments pledged to shore up embattled banks to restore confidence in a shaky global financial system.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 11 percent, its biggest one-day point gain ever and its biggest percentage gain since March 15, 1933. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> also notched its best single-day point gain, up 11.6 percent. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 11.8 percent.
Despite Monday's leap, the Dow Jones industrial is still down 29 percent in 2008 and the S&P 500 index <.SPX> down 32 percent.
(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by David Cowell)
