Futures Rise in Electronic Trade on Europe Hopes

U.S. stock futures jumped in early electronic trading on Sunday on the latest round of proposals out of Europe designed to corral the growing euro zone debt crisis.

U.S. stocks suffered their worst week in two months last week. The lack of a credible solution to Europe's debt crisis kept investors away from risky assets and downgrades of Belgium and Hungary added to the gloom.

Germany and France are exploring radical ways to integrate euro zone countries in order to impose tighter budget control. In addition, media reports that the International Monetary Fund was preparing a rescue plan for Italy bolstered sentiment.

S&P 500 futures rose 21 points. Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 146 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 26 points.

The U.S. market's seven-day losing streak attracted early short-covering as Asian markets traded higher and the euro rebounded from recent losses. But recent rallies on hopes for a solution have not lasted long.

Last week, the S&P 500 fell 4.7 percent, giving back almost two-thirds of its gains in October, the market's best month in 20 years. The Dow was off 4.8 percent for the week and the Nasdaq fell 5.1 percent.

(Editing by Dale Hudson)