Wall St. futures head higher on manufacturing data

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock futures are getting a boost from solid manufacturing data from around the world as attention turns toward the state of the U.S. economy before a crucial jobs report.

Dow futures are up 86 points at 12,663, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 futures are up 9 points at 1,317. The Nasdaq composite is up 15 points at 2,479.

Figures released Wednesday showed that China's manufacturing sector is growing steadily and Europe's is performing better than forecast. That gives investors hope that U.S. manufacturing figures coming later will show the world's largest economy continues its recovery.