NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Just getting U.S. stock markets open will be the big event Friday as New York remains in the midst of a major power blackout.

At 8:30 a.m. ET,futures pointed to a slightly higher start for the major indexes.

Much of the Northeast U.S. lost its power just after the markets closed Thursday. But even though has not yet been restored to most of New York, the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market say they intend to open as scheduled using auxiliary power supplies.

The big problem will be getting market participants to the places where they do their trading. New York's subway system won't be operating, and driving in the nation's largest city will be difficult without traffic lights.

"The NYSE has its own power generation system, so getting that up and running isn't a problem, but getting people there will be," Steve Previs, a dealer in U.S. shares at Jefferies International in London, told Reuters. "As we approach noon (7 a.m. ET), somebody is going to have to make a decision whether trading will go ahead or not."

Investors will have several economic reports and Dell Computer's earnings to consider in addition to New York's power problems.

Consumer prices rose about in line with the Briefing.com analysts' forecast. While the overall price rise of 0.2 percent matched the consensus, the 0.2 percent rise in prices excluding food and energy was above the 0.1 percent forecast for the so-called "core-CPI."

Industrial production for July is forecast to have risen 0.2 percent, an improvement from June's 0.1 percent. Capacity utilization is expected to edge up to 74.4 percent from 74.3 percent.

Just after the markets open, the University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment report for August will be available to subscribers. The index is seen rising to 91.5 from July's 90.9.

One positive for the tech sector that might be overlooked because of the blackout is Dell Computer (DELL: Research, Estimates)'s earnings and forecast. The PC maker posted higher fiscal second-quarter earnings that met the estimates of analysts surveyed by First Call, and raised its sales forecast for the current quarter. Dell shares closed 8 cents higher Thursday at $31.39.

The Dow Jones industrial average begins at 9,310.56 after a 0.4 percent gain Thursday. The Nasdaq composite index is at 1,700.34 following a 0.8 percent advance.

Asian-Pacific stocks ended mixed, with Tokyo's Nikkei index down a half-percent lower. European markets were higher in early trade. (Check the latest on world markets)

Treasury yields finished Thursday at 4.52 percent. The dollar was steady against the yen and euro.

Brent oil futures rose 25 cents to $29.12 a barrel in London, where gold was higher.