Wall Street set for modest gain as investors await reading on manufacturing activity

US stock futures edge up before manufacturing data

NEW YORK — Stocks are set for a modest gain ahead of a key reading on U.S. manufacturing.

Wall Street, coming off its best month in nine years, is more optimistic the economy is near a rebound. Investors expect the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index will support that belief.

Economists predict the April index will show the smallest contraction since last October.

Dow Jones industrial average futures are up 26, or 0.3 percent, at 8,152. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures are up 3.10, or 0.4 percent, at 873.10. Nasdaq 100 index futures are up 5.25, or 0.4 percent, at 1,398.75.

The S&P 500 index, a broad measure of the market, rose 9.4 percent in April. That was its biggest monthly increase since March 2000.