Stocks ready to extend gains into 7th day after report showing increase in home prices

Stock futures higher following housing data

NEW YORK — Stock futures pointed to another day of gains on Wall Street Tuesday following a report showing a slight rise in home prices.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index rose for a fifth straight month in October, edging up 0.4 percent. However, the index was off 7.3 percent from October last year. That was roughly in line with what analysts expected.

The index is now up 3.4 percent from its bottom in May, but still almost 30 percent below its peak in April 2006. Only 11 of the 20 cities tracked in the report showed gains.

Stock futures had been up moderately prior to the report. Later Tuesday morning, the Conference Board will release its consumer confidence index for December.

Trading has been quiet in recent days, as many investors take vacation between the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. But even in light volume, the market continues to climb, adding to the big gains logged since stocks hit 12-year lows in March, amid improving economic data.

Reports showing an increase in durable goods orders and a decline in claims for unemployment benefits helped spur the market higher last week. On Monday, investors were encouraged by a jump in retail sales.

“If you look at the day-to-day news coming out, it’s been very positive,” said Tim Speiss, chairman of Personal Wealth Advisors practice at Eisner LLP in New York.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index has risen for six straight days, gaining 2.3 percent to reach a new high for the year.

Ahead of the market’s open, Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 31, or 0.3 percent, to 10,518. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 3.90, or 0.4 percent, to 1,127, while Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 4.50, or 0.2 percent, to 1,879.

Economists expect the consumer confidence index to rise to 52 in December from 49.5 in November. While still a long way from what is considered healthy — a reading above 100 signals strong growth — the index has risen significantly from a historic low of 25.3 in February.

The better consumers feel about the economy, the more they will be willing to spend. Consumer spending is an important driver of economic growth.

Government bonds were little changed Tuesday. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note held steady at 3.85 percent. The Treasury Department will issue $42 billion of five-year notes later Tuesday as part of its latest round of auctions.

The dollar slipped against other major currencies. Oil prices rose 56 cents to $79.33 a barrel in electronic premarket trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold prices dipped.

Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average inched up 0.04 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.1 percent. In afternoon trading in Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.6 percent, Germany’s DAX index added 0.3 percent, and France’s CAC-40 rose 0.6 percent.