U.S. Stocks Expected To Open Up Before Fed Minutes, Alcoa Report

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks were on firmly track to shift higher at the start of trading Tuesday, with investors looking to commentary from the Federal Reserve's September policy meeting on the economy and interest rates and to post-close financial results from blue-chip aluminum producer Alcoa Inc.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 36 points to 14,148.

S&P 500 futures rose 5.10 points to 1,567.80, while those for the Nasdaq 100 gained 7.75 points to 2,18800.

In trade thinned by the Columbus Day holiday, U.S. stocks on Monday ended mixed to mostly lower, with the technology sector ranking among the few bright spots as shares of Google Inc. climbed to a new record high.

In Tuesday's early trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, crude-oil futures continued to drop after a report of increased production from a Nigerian oil field. Crude for November delivery was off 38 cents a barrel to stand at $79.40.

At 2 p.m. Eastern time, the Fed's slated to release the minutes from its gathering Sept. 18, when central bankers cut U.S. interest rates by fully half a percentage point.

And in the unofficial start of third-quarter earnings season, Dow component Alcoa is expected to report a profit of 65 cents a share for the third quarter, according to the average estimate of analysts who follow the aluminum producer. This would be up about 5% from the year-ago period.

Already out with results, Mosaic Co. reported a first-quarter profit of 69 cents a share, topping the average analyst forecast calling for 58 cents a share.

And shares of Yum Brands Inc. are likely to draw a boost. The fast-food restaurant giant reported a better than expected third-quarter profit after Monday's close.

On the broker front, Deutsche Bank downgraded Dow component Coca-Cola Co. to hold from buy, citing valuation.

JetBlue Airways Corp. also drew a downgrade, with Goldman Sachs cutting its rating to neutral from buy.

Also expected to draw investor scrutiny will be Sprint Nextel Corp. , after the telecommunications giant said late Monday that Gary Forsee has stepped down as CEO. Under fire amid subscriber defections and disappointing share-price performance, the executive's exit wasn't entirely unexpected.

In Asia, a handful of stock indexes in the region ended at record highs. .

In Europe, shares tallied broad-based gains, paced by London. See .

By Kate Gibson