US STOCKS-Futures muted ahead of jobless claims data, AT&T rises after results

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* Futures down: Dow 0.01%, S&P 0.08%, Nasdaq 0.09%

By Shivani Kumaresan
April 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were subdued
on Thursday as investors assessed earnings from companies,
including Southwest Airlines and AT&T, while awaiting weekly
jobless claims data for clues on the pace of recovery in the
U.S. labor market.
Shares of AT&T Inc T.N gained 1% in premarket trading
after the company's wireless subscriber additions trounced
analysts' estimates. Southwest Airlines Co LUV.N posted a smaller-than-expected
quarterly adjusted loss and forecast lower cash burn in the
second quarter. The airline's shares, however, fell 1.7%.
Wall Street's main indexes closed higher, recovering from a
two-day decline in the previous session with the economically
sensitive value stocks .RLV gaining about 1.1%.
Speedy vaccination rollouts in the United States has
improved the pace of economic recovery, infused confidence among
people and given a solid start to the first-quarter earnings
season.
The U.S. economy will grow at its fastest annual pace in
decades this year and outperform most of its major peers, with
the outlook upgraded sharply, but another COVID-19 surge was the
biggest risk over the next three months, a Reuters poll showed.
Meanwhile, official data is likely to show that the number
of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last
week.
At 6:39 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were down 3 points, or
0.01%, S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were down 3.25 points, or 0.08%,
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were down 12 points, or 0.09%.
Chipmaker Intel Corp INTC.O is expected to post a drop in
first-quarter revenue later in the day, with analysts looking
forward to updates on its U.S. manufacturing plants and chips
for automakers amid a global microchip supply shortage. Its
shares rose 0.3% in premarket trading.