Stock futures signal flat open, LinkedIn eyed

PARIS -

Stock index futures pointed to a flat open on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.03 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.01 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.05 percent at 1028 GMT.

* European shares rose on Friday to recover from sharp falls the previous session, as robust Chinese trade data boosted expectations the global economy would strengthen and in turn maintain demand for equities. <.EU>

* Data showed Chinese exports grew 25 percent in January from a year earlier versus a forecast of 17 percent in a Reuters poll while imports climbed 28.8 percent, highlighting robust domestic demand.

* Trade figures from Germany released on Friday morning also lifted the mood. The data showed Germany's trade surplus hit its second highest level in more than 60 years in 2012, signaling the underlying strength of Europe's biggest economy.

* LinkedIn Corp will be in focus on Friday, after it announced both blow-out quarterly profits and a bullish forecast for the new year that exceeded Wall Street's already lofty expectations.

* Boeing started the year ahead of its European rival Airbus, after clinching the industry's top spot in 2012, with broadly higher orders and deliveries in January, data showed on Friday.

* U.S. agencies cleared Boeing Co to restart test flights of its grounded 787 Dreamliner in order to get more data on potentially faulty batteries, but they also demanded a closer look at how the batteries were approved, which may delay resuming delivery of Boeing's newest aircraft.

* U.S. electronics retailer RadioShack Corp named Walgreen executive Joseph Magnacca as its new chief executive, hoping to boost sales by tapping his merchandising and marketing experience.

* DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc might cut a maximum of 500 jobs from its 2,000 member workforce following disappointing holiday results and delays to its film lineup, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing a person familiar with the situation.

* U.S. solar company SunPower Corp , which is battling a drastic drop in panel prices due to a supply glut, said on Thursday it expects revenue for this year to be unchanged from 2012.

* Coinstar Inc , the operator of Redbox video rental kiosks, forecast current-quarter results significantly below analysts' estimates due to a slower movie release schedule, sending its shares down nearly 9 percent in extended trading.

* Chipmaker Microchip Technology Inc forecast a larger-than-expected profit and revenue for the current quarter after reporting third-quarter results that beat Wall Street expectations on higher sales of its microcontroller chips.

* Low natural gas prices and slow economic growth forced U.S. power company Exelon Corp to cancel plans to spend $2.3 billion on capacity expansion at its nuclear power plants and other projects, Chief Executive Chris Crane said on Thursday.

* Network gear maker Riverbed Technology Inc's quarterly profit fell 76 percent on costs associated with its $1 billion acquisition of Opnet Technologies Inc, and the company forecast current-quarter profit below estimates.

* U.S. cable company Charter Communications said on Thursday it was buying Cablevision's rural cable asset Optimum West for $1.63 billion.

* On the macro front, investors awaited December international trade figures, due at 1330 GMT, and wholesale inventories, at 1500 GMT.

* U.S. stocks declined on Thursday, taking a step back from their recent advance, prompted by comments by the ECB president on the euro and Europe's outlook.

* The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> was down 42.47 points, or 0.30 percent, at 13,944.05. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> was down 2.73 points, or 0.18 percent, at 1,509.39. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> was down 3.34 points, or 0.11 percent, at 3,165.13.

(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Catherine Evans)