US stock futures rise after week of wild swings

Friday, August 12, 2011, Vol. 35, No. 32

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. stock index futures are rising after a week of massive gains and losses on Wall Street.

Shares have been swinging by hundreds of points each day as traders react with hair triggers to news about the economy, Federal Reserve policy and a financial crisis that threatens to spill over into U.S. banks.

Markets in Europe advanced on Friday and bank stocks recovered some of this week's losses. Regulators of major European exchanges banned the short-selling of financial company shares, protecting them from downward pressure by speculators. Asian markets closed mixed.

Almost an hour and a half ahead of the market opening, S&P 500 index futures are up 3 points, or 0.3 percent, at 1,172. Dow Jones futures are up 43, or 0.4 percent, at 11,127. Nasdaq 100 futures are up 5, or 0.2 percent, at 2,163.