Stock futures up after strong European data and higher oil

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures rose on Monday, building on last week's gains and tracking higher global equities, after strong euro zone industrial data and as oil prices advanced.

European shares hit a four-week high after data showed euro zone industrial output surged in April more than in any month in almost two decades.

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou told a meeting of top bankers he would do what was needed to get Greece back onto a growth track.

A burst of short-covering helped lift the euro further away from a four-year low as sentiment toward risky assets improved. European shares were up nearly 1 percent, while the Nikkei ended nearly 2 percent higher.

Oil futures climbed 2 percent to above $75.24 per barrel on renewed optimism about a global economic recovery.

"The positive tone this morning stems from the strength in the euro and the confidence in a positive outcome with the European (debt) situation," said Andre Bakhos, director of market analytics at Lek Securities in New York. "Being in a sensitive, headline-driven market, we find little this morning to weigh down stocks as investors are looking to build on the recent gains."

S&P 500 futures rose 7.1 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 71 points and Nasdaq 100 futures added 12.25 points.

Cablevision Systems Corp will be in view after a source said the big cable television operator plans to buy Bresnan Communications, an operator in the Western United States, for about $1.3 billion.

Fertilizer producer Mosaic Co is in talks to buy Mexico's Grupo Fertinal in a deal worth as much as $1 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The Agricultural Bank of China is seeking to raise more than $23 billion through a dual Hong Kong and Shanghai listing, putting it on course to be the world's biggest IPO.

BP Plc shares fell near 6 percent in London trading after it said the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had already cost it $1.6 billion.

U.S. stocks rose in a late Friday rally as a strong forecast from chipmaker National Semiconductor Corp lifted technology shares after an unexpected drop in retail sales hurt sentiment.

For the week, the Dow rose 2.8 percent, the S&P gained 2.5 percent, and the Nasdaq advanced 1.1 percent.

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)