US STOCKS-Futures edge higher as oil holds steady

                                

                                
 * OPEC sees no need for supply meeting
                                
 * Wednesday marks 2-yr run for bull market
                                
 * Futures up: Dow 26 pts, S&P 2.3 pts, Nasdaq 1.75 pts
                                
 * For up-to-the-minute market news see [STXNEWS/US]
 (Adds quote, updates prices)
                                
 By Chuck Mikolajczak
                                
 NEW YORK, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures
edged higher on Wednesday as oil prices held steady after an
OPEC official said the group saw no need for a meeting to
discuss raising output even as turmoil in Libya continued.
                                
 Brent crude <LCOc1> gained 0.8 percent to $113.95 a barrel
while U.S. oil futures <CLc1> were flat at $105.08.
                                
 Libyan forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi surrounded rebels in
the western city of Zawiyah with tanks and snipers in the main
square, witnesses said. For details, see [ID:nLDE728029] and
[ID:nTOPMEAST].
                                
 The 12-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
believes supply is adequate, according to the official, after
the group held discussions about rising prices and the loss of
Libyan supplies. [ID:nLDE7280UW]
                                
 "The whole Libya Gaddafi situation is important. Is it
spreading? Is today just going to be steady as she goes?" said
Kim Caughey Forrest, senior equity research analyst at Fort
Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.
                                
 "Whether or not it impacts their real bottom line, people
are going to pull back in discretionary spending, and that
could impact the economy. That is why Wall Street rightly
focuses on the price of oil."
                                
 S&P 500 futures <SPc1> gained 2.3 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> rose 26
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> climbed 1.75 points.
                                
 Wednesday marks the two-year anniversary of the bull market
run from a 12-year S&P closing low of 676.53 sparked by the
financial crisis. For a factbox about the market climb, see
[ID:nN08195511]
                                
 Texas Instruments Inc <TXN.N> issued a current-quarter
earnings target slightly below estimates, blaming
weaker-than-expected demand for chips used in personal
computers. [ID:nN08161377]
                                
 Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd <STP.N> climbed 3.7 percent
to $9.33 in premarket trade a day after the world's top solar
panel maker posted sharply higher quarterly earnings and
reiterated its 2011 revenue and earnings outlook, which were
above estimates. [ID:nN08184420]
                                
 HCA, the biggest U.S. for-profit hospital chain, plans to
go public on Wednesday and could raise up to $3.7 billion.
Analysts expect strong demand, even though its private equity
owners saddled it with massive debt. [ID:nN08197287]
                                
 Finisar Corp <FNSR.O> tumbled 38.5 percent to $24.61 after
the network equipment maker forecast a dismal fourth quarter,
blaming an inventory pile-up by telecommunications equipment
makers in China. [ID:nL3E7E82G1]
                                
 In a light session for economic data, investors will watch
U.S. wholesale inventories for January at 10 a.m. EST (1500
GMT).
                                
 Portugal successfully sold two-year bonds, but the cost of
borrowing was the most expensive since it joined the euro,
keeping alive concerns it will need an international bailout.
[ID:nLDE72817J]
  (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)