U.S. stock futures pointed to a mixed open Thursday as investors digest a rise in oil prices amid a slew of corporate earnings reports.

Oil futures rose 76¢ to $125.20 a barrel Thursday after plunging dramatically over the last week.

In today’s earnings news, Ford Motor Co. said it lost US$8.67 billion in the second quarter as the company recorded US$5.3 billion in writedowns at the auto business and US$2.1 billion on leases at its credit arm.

Also in the auto sector, Daimler cut its earnings outlook after reporting a 25% second-quarter profit fall.

In Canadian earnings news, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. reported its best-ever quarterly earnings of $905.1 million, up by 220% from $285.7 million in the second quarter of last year.

Second-quarter earnings surged 77% over a year ago for Petro-Canada.

EnCana Corp. reported a 30% rise in second-quarter revenue to $7.32 billion, compared with $5.61 billion a year earlier.

Suncor Energy Inc. said high oil prices helped push its second quarter earnings to $829 million, up from $738 million during the same time period last year.

Credit Suisse Group today reported solid second-quarter earnings, with investment and private banking both contributing to the bank’s return to profit after a loss in the first quarter.

The Zurich-based bank said net profit for the three months ended June 30 fell to 1.22 billion Swiss francs (US$1.17 billion) from 3.19 billion francs a year earlier. The net profit figure was roughly double the amount analysts expected.

Dow Chemical Co. posted a 27% decrease in second-quarter net income as margins continue to shrink on soaring costs.

In M&A news, Kinross Gold Corp. and Aurelian Resources Inc. announced an agreement for Kinross to take over Aurelian in a deal valued at $1.2 billion. The all-stock transaction, giving Kinross the Fruta del Norte deposit in Ecuador, is valued at $8.20 per Aurelian share, a premium of about 60%.

French energy giant Total SA increased its bid for oilsands operator Synenco Energy Inc. to $10.25 cash per share, an offer that values the company at about $530.5 million.

There are no major economic releases from Statistics Canada today.

The Canadian dollar opened at US99.09¢, up 0.11 cent.

South of the border, the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits jumped 34,000 to 406,000 last week, matching a three-year high, the U.S. Labour Dept. reported today.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) releases existing home sales for June.

On Wednesday, weak resource shares dragged the Toronto Stock Exchange’s benchmark index lower on Wednesday. The S&P/TSX composite index fell 130.53 points, or 0.96%, to 13,512.66.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index fell 40.53 points, or 1.179%, to 2,223.13.

In New York, U.S. stocks rose on hopes lawmakers will approve a rescue plan for mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29.88 points, or 0.26%, to 11,632.38, while the S&P 500 gained 5.11 points, or 0.40%, to 1,282.11. The Nasdaq composite index was up 21.92 points, or 0.95%, at 2,325.88.