Stocks await deluge of data

LONDON (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks looked set to remain in recovery mode Tuesday ahead of a barrage of economic reports.

At 4:31 a.m. ET, futures were higher, pointing to slight gains at the market open. Stocks finished the previous session higher as investors picked up the pieces from last week's heavy losses.

Investors are likely to look to the economic calendar, which is chock full of reports, for direction Tuesday. Readings on personal income and spending, consumer confidence and construction spending all are scheduled to be released.

Automaker General Motors (Charts, Fortune 500) also is due to post quarterly results before the market open.

Wall Street suffered its worst week in more than four years last week as credit concerns coursed through the market. Those fears subsided Monday but investors remain nervous about the outlook for stocks.

In global trade, most Asian markets finished the session higher. European stocks advanced in early trading.

In major corporate news, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (Charts) is close to winning Dow Jones (Charts), but last minute negotiations over fees are holding up the deal, according to published reports. There is also the chance that Murdoch will ditch his $5 billion takeover bid if he doesn't win enough support from the controlling Bancroft family.