U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

Troubles at the world’s biggest carmaker General Motors dragged sharply down U.S. stock futures. Markets are seen to open lower on the news that SEC is probing Dow component GM and even strongly positive news is not likely to offset the sentiment.

S&P 500 futures were down 5 points, below their fair value. Dow Jones industrial average futures were down 41 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures lost 8 points.

Major companies, expected to report quarterly results today are the blue-chip Exxon Mobil Corp. ((XOM), Verizon Communications (VZ: chart) and Hilton Hotels (HLT: chart).

After the close, all eyes will be on Microsoft Corp. (MSFT: chart) when it reports first-quarter figures.

A rise in oil prices may add to inflation concerns. U.S. crude futures for December delivery were trading 64 cents higher at $61.30 a barrel on worries over rising heating oil demand ahead of winter.

Investors expect government report on weekly jobless claims and September durable goods figures. Economists forecast on average that claims would fall to 340,000 and durable goods would decline by 1.1 percent.

ECONOMIC NEWS

Thursday morning, the Department of Labor released its report on initial jobless claims in the week ended October 22, showing a bigger than expected decrease.

The report showed that initial jobless claims in the week ended October 22 fell to 328,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 356,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to fall to about 340,000 from the 355,000 originally reported for the previous week.

About 24,000 of the new jobless claims were people that were put out of work by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The increase lifted the total number of claims resulting from the storms to 502,000.

The Labor Dept. also said that the 4-week moving average fell to 366,500 from the previous week's revised average of 376,500. This marks the third consecutive decrease by the less volatile moving average.

The report also said that continuing claims in the week ended October 15 rose to 2.904 million from the preceding week's revised level of 2.862 million.

INTERNATIONAL MARKET NEWS

Asian-Pacific benchmarks closed mostly weak. The Nikkei ended up 0.2%, erasing earlier gains, pressured by concerns over General Motor’s financial stability. The index was helped by Toyota Motor, but gains were limited by weak Advantest Corp. Among the other regional markets, South Korea’s Kospi was the most notable loser, down 1.1%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.3%, and Taipei’s Weighted index fell 0.7%.

European markets lost ground at mid-day dealings, reflecting lowered outlooks by France Telecom and Alcatel, General Motors worries, as well as weaker Wall Street close Wednesday. The German DAX 30 led the decliners, dropping 1.3%, followed by the French CAC 40 which slipped 1.4%, and London’s FTSE 100 down 0.9%%.

ENERGY, METALS, CURRENCIES

Crude oil futures advanced on winter weather forecast. Light sweet crude December contract rose 49 cents to $61.15 a barrel on the Nymex. Heating oil climbed 2 cents to $1.8815 a gallon. Gasoline added 2 cents to $1.6050. Natural gas lost 12 cents to $13.918 per 1,000 cubic feet. London Brent gained 51 cents to $59.38.

Gold advanced in European trading. In London gold traded art the recommended price of $473.25 per troy ounce, up from $471.80. In Zurich it traded at $473.03, up from $472.90. In Hong Kong the precious metal rose $1.30 to close at $473.65. Silver opened at $7.82, down from $7.83.

In European trading the U.S. dollar declined against its major counterparts. The euro was quoted at $1.2122, up from $1.2072. The dollar changed hands at 115.25 yen, down from 115.84. The British pound was trading at $1.7858, up from $1.7739.

EARNINGS NEWS