Stock futures signaled a higher open early Wednesday

Stock futures signaled a higher open early Wednesday, helped by strong quarterly results from No. 2 U.S. bank JPMorgan Chase.
S&P 500 futures rose 9.3 points in the pre-market and were above fair value. Dow futures advanced 82 points. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 14 points.
Overseas markets got a boost from Tuesday's news that the Federal Reserve might have to make moves to provide more help to the struggling U.S. economy.
On the earnings front, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) logged third-quarter profit of $1.01 a share, helped by lower loan losses in its retail and credit card units. Results were up from 82 cents a year earlier and 11 cents above Wall Street views. The bank's shares rose more than 1% in pre-market trading.
Intel (INTC) topped Q3 earnings expectations after the close Tuesday, raising hopes that the computer industry might enjoy a strong holiday shopping season. The maker of microprocessors posted profit of 52 cents a share, up 58% from the prior year and 2 cents above Wall Street estimates. Revenue gained 18% to $11.1 billion, slightly above views of $10.99 billion.
Drugmaker Alkermes (ALKS) on Tuesday received Food and Drug Administration approval to market its Vivitrol addiction medication for use in patients addicted to narcotics such as heroin and morphine. It was approved as a monthly injection to treat addiction to opioids.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average rose 0.16%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.45%. In afternoon trading, Britain's FTSE 100 climbed 1.15%, Germany's DAX index gained 1.36% and France's CAC-40 advanced 1.47%.