*

Futures up: Dow 0.3%, S&P 500 0.3%, Nasdaq 0.3%

*

Weekly jobless claims fell less than expected last week

*

Personal computer makers dip after peer warns of memory

shortage

*

Cisco ( CSCO ) falls after Q2 adjusted margin misses estimates

(Updates before market open)

By Twesha Dikshit and Purvi Agarwal

Feb 12 (Reuters) -

Wall Street was set for a higher open on ​Thursday, a day

after robust jobs growth and a drop in ‌unemployment eased

worries about the U.S. economy, with investors turning their

focus on a slew of company earnings.

Traders took comfort from signs of a resilient economy

despite ⁠dialing back bets on interest-rate cuts after the data

was released. At least one reduction is still expected ⁠in June,

but chances of the U.S. Federal Reserve holding borrowing costs

steady have ‌risen to almost 40% from ‌24.8% earlier, according to

CME Group's FedWatch tool.

Weekly jobless claims data showed the number of Americans

filing new applications for unemployment benefits decreased less

than expected ​last week.

The next big data indicator is January's Consumer ‌Price

Index inflation report, which is due on Friday and could alter

expectations for the central bank's rate plans.

"Despite the stronger-than-expected jobs report,

evidence of easing inflation in the coming months should ​keep

the Fed on track for further easing," strategists at ​UBS Global

Wealth ‌Management said.

"Fed rate cuts in non-recessionary periods are

supportive for equities, and this macro backdrop remains a key

pillar of our positive outlook."

Wall Street indexes ended on a subdued note in the previous

session, as ⁠sentiment took a hit from the dip in rate-cut

expectations.

At 08:35 a.m., Dow E-minis were up ⁠142 points,

or 0.28%, S&P 500 E-minis added 21.5 points, or 0.31%,

and Nasdaq 100 E-minis rose 78.25 points, or 0.31%.

AI-driven disruption has weighed on companies, with markets

quick to punish sectors they deem vulnerable to competition.

Software shares continued their slide on Wednesday after

rebounding for three sessions, while brokerage firms deepened

losses.

AppLovin ( APP ) shares dropped 7.2% following

fourth-quarter results. The marketing ⁠platform has ‌lost nearly a

third of its value in the first six weeks of ‌the year as

competition heats up.

Personal-computer makers fell after China's Lenovo warned of

shipment pressure from a memory chip shortage. HP ⁠and

Dell Technologies ( DELL ) lost about 4% each.

Corporate earnings were front and center, with Howmet

Aerospace ( HWM ) shares gaining 4.8% in premarket trading after

the company forecast first-quarter profit above Wall Street

expectations.

Cisco ( CSCO ) shares fell 6% after the networking equipment

provider posted quarterly adjusted gross margin below estimates.

Markets will also tune in to remarks from Bank of Dallas

President Lorie Logan and Governor Stephen Miran later in the

day.

Meanwhile, the United States and China could extend their

trade truce for up to a year, with President Donald Trump and

his ​Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping expected to meet in Beijing

in early April, according to a report from the South China

Morning Post.

The U.S. House of Representatives narrowly backed a measure

disapproving of tariffs on Canada, with lawmakers voting to

terminate ​the use of a national emergency underpinning Trump's

punitive ‌levies on Canadian goods.