Stocks: Poised to snap three-day losing streak

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U.S. stock futures pointed to a firm start to trading Friday after markets endured a three-day losing streak.

Markets have fallen in recent days as investors opted to take money off the table after a record-breaking run. The main U.S. indexes have shot up by 20% to 32% so far this year, supported by the Federal Reserve's $85-billion-per-month bond-buying program.

The Republican-controlled U.S. House approved a compromised federal budget agreement on Thursday which could raise the chance that the Fed will begin winding back its support for the economy soon.

A tapering decision might come as early as next week when the central bank holds its final policy meeting for the year.

Related: Fear & Greed Index

It's a light day for economic news. The U.S. Labor Department is due to release its monthly Producer Price Index at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Shares of petroleum company Anadarko (APC) were down nearly 12% in premarket trading, after a court ruled that it and its Kerr-McGee unit acted improperly in its 2005 spinoff of paint materials company Tronox (TROX). The judge said that the company should pay for environmental cleanup.

Adobe (ADBE) shares surged in after-hours trading Thursday following quarterly sales results that came in ahead of expectations.

Qualcomm (QCOM) named Chief Operating Officer Steve Mollenkopf as its next CEO, succeeded Dr. Paul Jacobs, who will remain as executive chairman. Mollenkpof's name was recently tossed around as a possible successor to Steve Ballmer at Microsoft (MSFT).

European markets were higher in morning trading. Asian markets also diverged, with Japan's Nikkei closing up 0.4% while the Shanghai Composite ended the day lower.

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