Futures Soar After Fed Minutes

A higher open was in the cards for traders south of the border on Thursday as oil-producing nations agree to extend production cuts for nine months.

Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials hiked 58 points, or 0.3%, to 21,043. Futures for the S&P 500 gained 4.75 points, or 0.2%, to 2,406.75. NASDAQ futures gained 17.25 points, or 0.3%, to 5,748.50.

The proposed cuts are expected to be shared again by producers outside the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries later on Thursday. Led by Russia, non-OPEC producers had initially curbed output in conjunction with OPEC in a landmark deal for the first half of the year from January.

The U.S. central bank released minutes from its May meeting Wednesday, which showed that Fed officials seemed to be in sync with how they hope to reduce their $4.5-trillion balance sheet.

Fed watchers have showed concern that if the process of unwinding the balance sheet isn't done correctly, this could not only be disruptive but also drive rates up unexpectedly. Analysts are currently pricing in the next rate hike to take place at the Fed's next meeting in June.

Among firms reporting earnings Thursday: Abercrombie & Fitch, Costco Wholesale, and Medtronic plc.

Economically speaking, jobless claims and advance economic indicators are set to come out Thursday morning, with the Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Survey is also due out a bit closer to noon ET.

Overseas, markets in Europe were trading slightly lower, while in Japan, the Nikkei 225 traveled 0.4% higher, while the CSI 300 in Shanghai triumphed 1.8%.

Oil prices dipped 75 cents to $50.61 U.S. per barrel.

Gold prices added five dollars to $1,258.10 U.S. an ounce.