LONDON (ShareCast) - US stock futures pointed to a day of gains on Wall Street, as investors awaited economic data which could shed some light on the timing of a first rate hike.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is expected to open approximately up 72 points, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are poised to begin the session nine and 21 points higher respectively.

US stocks finished flat on Wednesday as early gains were wiped out on the back of weak retail sales data, sending the dollar sharply lower.

The greenbacks was feeling the pinch on Thursday, losing 0.44% against the pound and 0.71% against the pound, although it was flat against the yen, while gold futures climbed 0.02% to $1,218.50.

On Thursday, investors will focus on some key economic indicators, with weekly jobless claims released at 13:30 BST.

The data is expected to show 275,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, a 10,000 increase from the previous week.

"The jobless claims have been hovering around 15-year lows and did foresee the modest recovery in the US unemployment report last week," said Jasper Lawler, analysts at CMC Markets.

"Any upset in the jobless claims could pile further pressure on the US dollar that is hitting multi-month lows following the flat April US retail sales and improving Eurozone economic growth figures."

At the same time, the producer price index for April is scheduled for release, with analysts expect a flat reading.

"US PPI is looking largely flat, adding to worries from recent weak data that the second quarter may not be as strong as many were anticipating and the U.S. might not be ready for interest-rate rises just yet," analysts at Accendo Markets said in a note.

In company news, restaurant operator Shake Shack jumped 8.9% in pre-market trading after reporting late on Wednesday that its first quarter results exceeded expectations.

IT group Cisco Systems slipped 0.9% ahead of the bell after reporting a first quarter loss on Wednesday.

The earnings season continue with fashion retailer Nordstrom, manufacturing equipment Applied Materials, King Digital Entertainment and restaurant group El Pollo Loco Holdings set to report after the close.

Oil prices were mixed, with West Texas Intermediate slipping 0.03% to $60.48 a barrel, while Brent rose 0.27% to $66.99 a barrel.

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