Tech stocks set to surge

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Technology stocks were expected to lift the overall market at Wednesday's open after Intel topped analysts' expectations for the prior quarter and gave a positive second-half outlook.

At 7:12 a.m. ET, futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500, and Nasdaq-100 were higher, with the Nasdaq futures up by about 1.8%.

Futures measure current index values against their perceived future performance.

Stocks ended modestly higher Tuesday after Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings but investors remained uncertain about the pace of the economic recovery. Goldman Sachs posted profit of $3.44 billion, or $4.93 a share for the second quarter, beating the most bullish of expectations.

Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Jefferies & Co., said futures were being driven by strong Intel earnings and rising oil prices. Going forward, he said the economy needs to see signs of inflation from the Consumer Price Index report.

"Any modicum of inflation will be seen as a good thing," said Hogan. "We need to grow out of this economic slowdown we're in. You want to see a reflation of the economy."
0:00 /0:53European banking, mining strong

Intel: After the market close Tuesday, tech bellwether Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) reported second-quarter profit and revenue that both fell from a year ago but beat Wall Street estimates.

In addition, the chipmaker said it expects to see revenue growth in the second half of the year, aided in large part by a rally in personal computer sales.

Shares of Intel rose 8% in premarket trading.

Economic reports ahead: The consumer price index (CPI), set for release before the market open, is expected to have risen 0.6% in June after gaining 0.1% in May, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. So-called core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, is expected to have edged up 0.1% after edging up 0.1% in May.

Other reports expected before the open are the New York Federal Reserve's reading on regional manufacturing and the federal government's report on industrial production and capacity utilization.

Later in the day, the minutes from the last Federal Reserve policy meeting are due.

Global markets: Asian stocks ended higher Wednesday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index scratching out a 0.1% gain. European markets rose about 2% in midday trading.

Oil and money: The price of oil rallied $1 to $60.52 a barrel ahead of the weekly government inventory report. The dollar slipped versus major international currencies, including the yen, the euro and British pound. To top of page