* Q1 GDP data expected to show economy shrunk 4.9 pct
* First U.S. death from swine flu confirmed
* Time Warner posts flat first-quarter profit
* Futures up: S&P 9 pts, Dow 73 pts, Nasdaq 10.50 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news click []
(Adds details, byline)
By Leah Schnurr
NEW YORK, April 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures
were set to open about 1 percent higher on Wednesday as
investors were hopeful a reading on gross domestic product
would fuel more optimism that the recession is subsiding.
Investors are also awaiting comments from the U.S. Federal
Reserve for a look at the central's bank's take on the state of
the economy.
The release of advance first-quarter GDP data may indicate
the slowdown was less brutal than initially thought. The
economy is expected to have shrunk at a seasonally adjusted
annual rate of 4.9 percent in the first quarter, after
contracting 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.
"The GDP number is a perfect example of what we're looking
at," said Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst, Jefferies & Co in
Boston. "The economic data is getting worse at a slower rate,
and I think that's the beginning of a recovery."
But worries over the threat to the economy of a global
outbreak of swine flu could weigh after a government official
confirmed the first U.S. death from the new flu strain -- a
23-month-old child in Texas. (For details, see
[]).
The Fed will make a statement in the afternoon at the end
of its two-day policy meeting, and economists expect it to hold
its target range for its benchmark funds rate steady at near
zero, as it has since December.
In addition to aggressively slashing interest rates, the
Fed has launched a $1.15 trillion program to purchase mortgage
debt and long-dated Treasury securities.
Shares of Time Warner Inc <TWX.N> rose 6.3 percent to
$23.14 after the media group posted flat first-quarter profit,
weighed by a drop in advertising sales. [].
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> rose 9 points and were above fair
value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account
interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures <DJc1> climbed
73 points, and Nasdaq 100 <NDc1> futures added 10.50 points.
U.S. markets may get a boost from positive earnings in
Europe after Germany's Siemens AG <SIEGn.DE> reported strong
numbers and Spain's Banco Santander SA <SAN.MC> beat forecasts.
The results sent European shares higher. [].
Bank of America Corp <BAC.N> holds its annual shareholder
meeting in North Carolina amid media reports it may have to
raise more capital.
Shareholders are to vote on whether Chief Executive Kenneth
Lewis should stay on the board, or at least give up his job as
chairman.
The Wall Street Journal reported Lewis may be forced to
relinquish the chairman job but is set to win re-election to
the bank's board by a wide margin. [].
Shares in E*Trade Financial Corp <ETFC.O> slid 26.8 percent
at $1.80 in early electronic trading, a day after the retail
brokerage said it is facing regulatory pressure to boost
capital as it posted its seventh straight quarterly loss.
[]
Aetna Inc <AET.N> was down 5.8 percent at $22.98 after the
health insurer reported a slight rise in first-quarter net
income amid higher-than-projected medical costs in its
commercial business. []
Stocks fell Tuesday as fresh worries that major banks may
need to raise more money offset reassuring economic data and a
big dividend boost from IBM <IBM.N>.
The Dow is up 22.5 percent from its 12-year closing low on
March 9. For the month of April alone, the Dow is up 5.4
percent. But it remains down 8.7 percent for the year.
(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
