NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - U.S. stock markets headed for a lower open Thursday after reports of a rise in weekly jobless claims, a widening of the trade deficit, and a disappointing quarterly report from top retailer Wal-Mart pressured futures.

At 8:55 a.m. ET, futures pointed to lower start for the major indexes, tipping down after the labor and trade reports.

The Labor Department said 366,000 people filed new claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended Nov. 8, compared with a revised reading of 353,000 in the prior week. Economists, on average, expected 364,000 new claims, according to Briefing.com.

At the same time, the Commerce Department said the U.S. trade deficit widened in September, for the first time in six months, to $41.3 billion from $39.2 billion in August. The reading came in above Wall Street's average $40.5 billion forecast from analysts surveyed before the report.

Wal-Mart (WMT: Research, Estimates) reported higher third-quarter earnings of 46 cents a share, up from 40 cents a share a year earlier, but the company missed Wall Street's estimates by a penny. Analysts surveyed by First Call expected a profit of 47 cents a share.

The top retailer also said it expects profit of 63 cents-to-65 cents a share in the fourth quarter, compared with analysts' average estimate of 65 cents a share, according to Reuters Research. Wal-Mart shares about 2 percent in Instinet pre-market trading.

For details of Wednesday's gains, click above.

Dell (DELL: Research, Estimates)'s report is due after trading begins. The PC maker's profit is seen climbing to 26 cents a share from 21 cents a year earlier. Followers of Dell will be watching for positive surprises as a potential buying opportunity into what has been the best-performing computer company during the tech slump of the past few years.

The Dow Jones industrial average surged 1.1 percent Wednesday amid anticipation of the earnings and economic reports. The Nasdaq composite index was a 2.2 percent winner. (see chart for details)

Asian-Pacific stocks advanced Thursday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index up 1.1 percent. European markets rallied in early trading. (Check the latest on world markets)

Treasury prices rose after the economic reports, with the 10-year note yield at 4.33 percent ahead of the auction of new debt later in the day. The dollar fell against the yen, but was higher versus the euro.

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Brent oil futures slipped 3 cents to $28.95 a barrel in London. Gold rose to a seven-year high and was within $4 of the $400-an-ounce mark.