US STOCKS-Futures back in record territory as Middle East tensions fade

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* Futures up: Dow 0.37%, S&P 0.36%, Nasdaq 0.54%

By Sruthi Shankar
Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday
after the United States and Iran pulled back from new military
action, while firming optimism about a U.S.-China trade deal put
Wall Street back on track for fresh records.
China's commerce ministry said on Thursday that Vice Premier
Liu He will sign a Phase 1 deal in Washington next week, raising
hopes that a prolonged tariff war between the two sides will
come to a close. After a wobbly start in the new year on fears of an all-out
conflict in the Middle East, nerves eased on Wednesday as
Washington and Tehran looked to defuse the crisis after Iran's
retaliatory attack following the killing of a top general.
At 07:23 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 107 points,
or 0.37%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 11.75 points, or 0.36%
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 48 points, or 0.54%.
Investors are awaiting Friday's jobs report as well as the
fourth-quarter earnings season, which begins next week. Earnings
for the S&P 500 companies are expected to drop 0.6% in their
second consecutive decline, according to Refinitiv IBES data.
Apple AAPL.O gained 1.1% after government data showed
iPhone sales in China in December jumped more than 18% year on
year. Alphabet GOOGL.O , Facebook FB.O and Twitter TWTR.N
rose between 0.6% and 1.2% after Cowen Equity Research raised
its price target on the stocks after their survey of U.S. ad
buyers showed upbeat 2020 advertisement spending.
Starbucks Corp SBUX.O rose 1.5% after Barclays raised to
"over weight", while Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD.O gained
2.5% after Mizhuo recommended "buy" on the stock, citing
improving server market in 2020.
Beyond Meat BYND.O shares rose 1.6% after McDonald's Corp
MCD.N said it would expand its trial in Canada of vegan
burgers made by Beyond Meat. Coca-Cola Co KO.N was up 1% after Credit Suisse upgraded
its stock to "outperform" as the brokerage expects revenue to
grow at the high-end of the company's 4% to 6% forecast for
several years.