U.S. stock futures tick higher Thursday

U.S. stock futures were ticking higher on Thursday after Wall Street took a tumble in the prior session as the Federal Reserve trimmed its bond purchases.

Dow Jones industrial average index futures were up 0.2%, Standard & Poor's 500 index futures added 0.1% and Nasdaq index futures added 0.1%.

Stocks got a temporary boost Wednesday from aggressive interest rate hikes by the Turkish central bank aimed at stabilizing the lira and keeping inflation in check. But the Federal Reserve's decision to further "taper," or reduce, its mortgage and long-term bond purchases, even though expected, was a major factor in roiling markets.

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On Wednesday, the S&P fell 18.30 points, or 1%, to 1,774.20. The Dow fell 189.77 points, or 1.2%, to 15,738.79. The Nasdaq composite dropped 46.53 points, or 1.1%, to 4,051.43.

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In Asia Thursday, responding to the Fed news and some weak economic data out if China, Japan's Nikkei 225 index was down 2.5% at 15,007.06 after the government reported that retail sales fell 1.1% in December from the month before. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined 0.5% to 22,035.42.

European stocks were staging a retreat, with all the major regional indexes down. Spain's IBEX 35 led decliners, off 0.7%.

Benchmark oil for March delivery was up 13 cents to $97.49 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract slipped 5 cents to close at $97.36 on Wednesday.

The U.S. government's first estimate of fourth-quarter economic growth is due Thursday.

DATA: Economists see bright GDP report

Contributing: Associated Press