By Silvia Amaro, CNBC–

  • There will be retail sales, import prices and the Empire State manufacturing numbers out at 08:30 a.m. ET.
  • Investors will also be waiting for the release of the Federal Reserve Financial Stability report due at 2:00 p.m ET.

U.S. stock index futures were higher Friday morning.

At around 02:25 a.m. ET, Dow futures rose 95 points, indicating a positive open of more than 97 points. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were also higher.

Wall Street closed higher on Thursday despite ongoing worries about U.S.-China trade.

U.S. officials have sent positive signs about trade talks with China. Larry Kudlow, the White House economic adviser, said Thursday that Washington is getting close to a trade deal with Beijing. His comments have followed recent reports that both countries had hit an impasse over agricultural products and intellectual property rights.

Furthermore, investors are waiting for various data releases Friday. There will be retail sales, import prices and the Empire State manufacturing numbers out at 08:30 a.m. ET. There will also be industrial production numbers released at 09:15 a.m. ET.

Market players will also be waiting for the release of the Federal Reserve Financial Stability report due at 2:00 p.m ET.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Thursday that he does not see signs of bubbles brewing amid concerns over higher corporate and government debt.

In corporate news, the earnings calendar is thin with only JD.com due to report before the bell. In the meantime, Disney said Thursday that it signed up 10 million customers for its Disney+ streaming services – This within the first day of its international launch.