By Ryan Vlastelica
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Tuesday, lifted by some strong corporate earnings and ahead of testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who may offer clues into steps the central bank could take to stimulate the economy.
A pair of major companies, Goldman Sachs
Bernanke is testifying before the U.S. Senate Banking Committee at 10:00 a.m., and while recent indications have suggested the Fed won't announce another round of quantitative easing unless economic conditions deteriorate further, the comments will still be closely monitored.
The market is coming off a period of weakness, with Monday's retail sales data the latest sign of slowing growth. Markets are down seven of the past eight sessions.
"We're on pins and needles waiting for any utterance from Bernanke that can be twisted into a sign of new stimulus," said James Dailey, portfolio manager of TEAM Asset Strategy Fund in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
"I doubt there will be any fireworks, but he could hint at something and that's what people are looking for. Investors are more worried about missing a QE trade than they are economic weakness."
Goldman rose 1.9 percent to $99.50 before the bell after reporting earnings that beat expectations, the latest financial company to rally on results. Coca-Cola, which also topped consensus forecasts, gained 0.6 percent to $76.97.
J&J reported adjusted profits that beat expectations by a penny, and shares fell 0.9 percent to $67.85.
With 6 percent of S&P components having reported thus far, 65 percent have topped profit expectations, according to the latest Thomson Reuters data.
S&P 500 futures rose 6.2 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 added 44 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 11.75 points.
The Nasdaq was lifted by Yahoo Inc
June consumer prices will be released at 8:30 and are forecast to have stayed unchanged, compared with a 0.3 percent drop in May. Excluding volatile food and energy items, CPI is forecast to rise 0.2 percent, a repeat of the May increase.
Morgan Stanley cut its 2012 U.S. auto sales projections by about 3 percent and cut its profit outlooks for the sector due to weak sales.
U.S. stocks fell in a volatile session on Monday, with the weak retail sales fueling losses.
(Editing by Dave Zimmerman)
