US pre-open: Stocks to edge higher ahead of earnings; retailers in focus

US futures pointed to a marginally firmer open on Wall Street on Tuesday as investors eyed a slew of corporate releases.

At 1100 GMT, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 futures were up 0.2%, while Nasdaq futures were 0.3% higher.

Investors will be digesting news from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who said on Monday that she will leave the central bank altogether when she steps down next year, choosing not to remain on the board until her term as governor expires in 2024.

Yellen is due to make a speech at 2300 GMT as she takes part in an event at New York University's business school.

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said: "Janet Yellen’s decision to step down next February is not really a surprise given her failure to be reappointed; I’m not sure many of us would do any differently were we in her shoes. Her speech today will therefore have something of a valedictory quality, but she is now firmly in the ‘lame duck’ category of Fed presidents and thus her comments may not move the market as they once did. Sic transit gloria, as they say."

In corporate news, Intuit was a touch lower in pre-market trade following better-than-expected earnings late on Monday, but disappointing guidance.

Drug distributor AmerisourceBergen was also likely to be in focus after agreeing on Monday to buy independent wholesaler H.D. Smith for $815m.

Elsewhere, shares of Agilent Technologies may be active after the maker of scientific equipment reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings on Monday.

Earnings were due before the open from retailers Lowe’s, Dollar Tree Inc and Signet Jewelers, while Medtronic, Campbell Soup and Hormel Foods were also slated to report.

On the data front, the Chicago Fed National Activity index is at 1330 GMT, while existing home sales are at 1500 GMT. Consensus is for a reading of 5.42m for existing home sales in October, up from September’s 5.39m.