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Wall St. feeling chipper
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April 18, 2001: 6:30 a.m. ET
Intel's upbeat outlook sends futures soaring; GM earnings due
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - U.S. stocks looked set to rally Wednesday morning, powered by a generally upbeat outlook from Intel Corp. -- but investors needed only to think back 24 hours to know the early signs on Wall Street may prove fickle.
Nasdaq-100 futures rose as much as they're allowed early Wednesday, indicating a sharp initial gain for the Nasdaq market. Standard & Poor's futures also rose, pointing to a broad opening advance for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones industrial average.
But futures were down sharply early Tuesday after Cisco Systems issued a warning -- and the day ended with modest gains for the major U.S. indexes. Lots of intervening events, including earnings reports from four Dow components and some economic data, could alter the market's direction before the closing bell sounds Wednesday.
Intel (INTC: Research, Estimates) reported first-quarter earnings late Tuesday slightly above lowered forecasts. But what has investors agog is that, while warning that sales in the current quarter will be a shade below expectations, executives from the world's chipmaker expect a stronger second half of 2001. Intel stock rose $3.06 to $29.10 in before-hours trading, extending gains made in after-hours action Tuesday.
Also reporting after the bell Tuesday was another chipmaker, Texas Instruments (TXN: Research, Estimates), whose first-quarter earnings topped lowered estimates. The company also said it would lay off about 6 percent of its work force. Texas Instruments shares rose $1 to $35 in after-hours trading Tuesday following a 99-cent decline during regular hours.
The Dow industrials start at 10,216.73 after a Tuesday gain of 58 points, the second straight advance for the blue-chip indicator. The Nasdaq composite index is at 1,923.22 following a nearly 14-point advance, while the S&P 500 opens at 1,191.53 after a 1 percent gain.
Asian markets got a boost from the Intel outlook, closing higher Wednesday. European stocks were higher in early trading.
Treasury prices dipped in early Wednesday trading, raising yields. The 10-year note yield rose to 5.25 percent from 5.20 percent late Tuesday, while the 30-year bond yield climbed to 5.67 percent from 5.65.
The dollar slipped against the yen and edged up versus the euro. Brent oil futures dipped 38 cents to $27.25 a barrel in London.
Four Dow industrial components are scheduled to report results before the start of trading. Leading the way is General Motors (GM: Research, Estimates), the world's largest automaker, which analysts surveyed by First Call expect to report a first-quarter earnings drop to 26 cents a share from $2.80 a year earlier.
Other Dow stocks forecast to report lower earnings are financial services company J.P. Morgan Chase (JPM: Research, Estimates) and International Paper (IP: Research, Estimates); increased profit is expected from soft-drink maker Coca-Cola (KO: Research, Estimates). IP reported a first-quarter profit of 5 cents a share, down from 60 cents a share a year earlier, matching forecasts.
Among the other prominent companies expected to report results are brokerage Merrill Lynch (MER: Research, Estimates), personal care products maker Gillette (G: Research, Estimates) and air carrier UAL Corp. (UAL: Research, Estimates).
Internet-media powerhouse AOL Time Warner (AOL: Research, Estimates), the parent of CNNfn.com, reported first-quarter earnings of 23 cents a share, up from 19 cents a year earlier and above the 20-cent consensus of analysts surveyed by First Call.
After the bell, the star attraction will be IBM (IBM: Research, Estimates), the computer maker and Dow component, whose earnings are expected to have declined from a year earlier.
 Others due after the bell include Apple Computer (AAPL: Research, Estimates), chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD: Research, Estimates) and defense contractor Raytheon (RTN.B: Research, Estimates).
The private Conference Board reports the March Index of Leading Indicators, which is expected by economists surveyed by Briefing.com to have declined 0.3 percent after a 0.2 percent dip in February. Also due Wednesday is the government's report on the trade balance in February; economists see a marginal dip in the deficit to $33 billion. 
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