NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- U.S. stock index futures were trading higher Thursday as the markets awaited direction on monetary policy from the European Central Bank, fuelling more QE speculation amid a recent spate of soft inflation reports. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 9 points, or 33.29 points above fair value. S&P 500 futures ticked up 2.25 points, or 4.44 points above fair value. Nasdaq futures advanced 4.3 points, or 10.36 points above fair value. Must Read:aHere Are 20 Stocks That Could Buck the Odds and Do Well in October Stocks were pummeled Wednesday after investors lost confidence amid a confluence of factors consisting of the geopolitical flare-up in China, soft economic reports out of Europe, and weaker-than-expected U.S. data. The S&P 500 dropped 1.3%, nearly matching the decline for all of September. During the current bull market, the first trading day of each month was usually a good one for stocks more often than not on better-than-expected manufacturing PMI news, according to Ed Yardeni, president of Yardeni Research. Wednesday's manufacturing PMI data coming in less than expected coupled with worries that the economy, corporate profits and the bond markets could turn wobbly after the Federal Reserve's first rate hike helped drive the session's selloff. "We aren't turning bearish, just less bullish about the upside prospects of the stock market over the rest of the year given the concerns," said Yardeni. "We want to see how they play out over the next few months." Yardeni is leaving his year-end target for the S&P at 2,014, where it was on an intraday basis on Sept. 19. He is sticking with 2,300 for next year, for now. European stock indices declined on Thursday, taking their cue from a weak day of trading in Asia and heavy falls on Wall Street on Wednesday. The European Central Bank meets Thursday to set rates and will give its decision at 7:45 a.m. EDT, followed by a press conference. Economists expect rates to remain unchanged -- the bank cut the benchmark rate to 0.05% a month ago -- but investors are watching eagerly for more information on its asset-buying program particularly in the wake of weaker inflation data recently. The U.S. weekly initial jobless claims data for last week will be out at 8:30 a.m., and the factory orders report for August will be released at 10 a.m. In top company headlines, Pacific Investment Management Co. said investors withdrew a record $23.5 billion from its flagship Pimco Total Return Fund last month, with most of the withdrawals taking place last Friday, the day Bill Gross resigned from the firm and announced he was joining Janus . Bank of America named CEO Brian Moynihan as chairman of the bank. The stock was up 0.77% in premarket trading. The NFL extended its contract with DirecTV to carry the "Sunday Ticket" package, which allows viewers to watch out-of-market games. AT&T is in the process of acquiring DirecTV for $48.5 billion, making the expanded possibilities for mobile particularly attractive. DirecTV rose 2.01%. Coca-Cola is overhauling its executive-compensation plan before it goes into effect next year, scaling back stock options and shifting to more cash-based performance awards, The Wall Street Journal reported. The SPDR Gold Trust was flat. The United States Oil Fund was off 2.4%. Must Read: October 2 Premarket Briefing: 10 Things You Should Know -- By Andrea Tse in New York Follow @AndreaTTse
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