U.S. futures head higher following China rate cut

NEW YORK — U.S. stock futures are rising after China cut its benchmark lending rate in another bid to revive its economy, which has slowed markedly.

Dow Jones industrial average futures are up 72 points to 12,491. Standard & Poor’s 500 futures are up 10.5 points to 1,326 and Nasdaq futures are up 16.5 points to 2,566.5.

The decision by the Chinese central bank Thursday to cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point is just the latest bid by the government to avoid a loss of momentum for its economy.

The U.S. Labor Department is expected to report that people applying for unemployment benefits likely fell last week, though not enough to signal major improvement in the job market after three months of weak hiring.

The Federal Reserve reports on consumer borrowing.