U.S. stock futures point to higher Wall St open

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher start on Wall Street on Thursday ahead of Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) results and U.S. July retail sales data.

* By 0812 GMT, futures for the S&P 500 SPc1, the Dow Jones Industrial average DJc1 and the Nasdaq Composite NDc1 were up 0.6 percent.

* Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, is due to report earnings per share of $0.85 in the second quarter, compared with $0.86 a year earlier, according to a Reuters survey of 22 analysts. Wal-Mart shares in Frankfurt (WMT.F) were down 0.2 percent.

* U.S. retail sales for July is due at 1230 GMT. Economist in a Reuters survey expect a 0.7 percent rise compared with a 0.6 percent rise in June, and excluding automobiles sales are seen up 0.1 percent compared with a 0.3 percent decline in the prior month.

* The U.S. Labor Department will release weekly jobless claims at 1230 GMT. Economists in a Reuters survey forecast a total of 545,000 new filings compared with 550,000 in the prior week.

U.S. unemployment levels are likely to stay higher for longer following the country's severe recession and ongoing banking crisis, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City released on Wednesday. [ID:nN12134964]

* In Europe, Germany and France enjoyed a surprising return to economic growth in the second quarter of the year, ending their recessions earlier than many policymakers and economists had expected. [ID:nLD331672]

* European shares rose 0.7 percent, with sentiment improving after the U.S. Federal Reserve said the U.S. economy was showing signs of levelling out and after growth data from Germany and France. [.EU]

* The euro rose against the dollar and yen after the GDP data from Germany and France. [FRX/]

* Hedge fund manager John Paulson, who made a fortune betting against financial companies after foreseeing the credit crisis, stocked up on shares of Bank of America (BAC.N) during the second quarter, a regulatory filing showed [ID:nN12401520]. Bank of America shares in Frankfurt (BAC.F) rose 4.8 percent. link....