By Alexandra Gibbs, CNBC–

U.S. stock index futures edged into the black ahead of Thursday’s open, as investors geared up for news out of the political and economic spheres.

Around 4:35 a.m. ET, Dow futures rose 34 points, indicating a positive open of 36.08 points. Futures on the S&P 500 were slightly higher, indicating an upbeat open of 1.73 points, while Nasdaq futures popped, signaling an open of 4.69 points up. Across the Atlantic, markets in Asia and Europe showed a mostly positive picture.

The future of trade relations between the U.S. and China took a new turn in the last 24 hours, after news emerged that the U.S. was seeking to reignite trade discussions with China. Sources familiar with these negotiations told CNBC that the States was in the early stages of proposing a new round of trade talks with China in the near future.

This comes after a week of turmoil between the two nations, which saw China looking to seek permission from the World Trade Organization to inflict sanctions upon the U.S., and President Donald Trump stating last week that he was “ready to go” on hitting China with an additional amount of tariffs. Consequently, an air of cautiousness lingers for markets around the world.

On the economic data front, jobless claims and consumer price index figures are due out at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by the Monthly Treasury Statement at 2 p.m. ET.