Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Friday after European Union leaders agreed on measures that partially addresses the region's crippling sovereign debt crisis.

The summit agreed on stricter budget rules for the euro zone but failed to secure changes to the EU treaty among all the member countries. Investors appeared to embrace the deal, with the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares <.FTEU3> gaining 0.5 percent in choppy trade.

Some were hoping for a bigger deal, but we're seeing a lot more meat behind the effort with these measures, said Dennis Wassung, portfolio manager at Cabot Money Management in Salem, Massachusetts.

We should expect more volatility around this issue going forward, but this is a good step in the right direction.

Equities have risen in anticipation of a plan, with the S&P 500 up 6.5 percent since November 25. But Wall Street tumbled on Thursday after the European Central Bank dashed hopes for additional bond buying. Markets have been volatile, reacting to every headline out of Europe.

Banks, which have been pressured by the uncertainty, rallied in premarket trading. Bank of America Corp rose 0.9 percent to $5.64, while JPMorgan Chase & Co added 0.7 percent to $32.45, and Citigroup Inc rose 1.5 percent to $28.17. The Financial Select Sector SPDR rose 1.1 percent to $12.96 before the bell.

S&P 500 futures were up 3.8 points and above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures jumped 27 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures added 14.75 point.

DuPont and Co

fell 5.1 percent to $44.15 premarket after the Dow component cut its 2011 profit outlook, citing slower growth in some businesses.

Chipmakers will be in focus a day after Texas Instruments Inc cut its revenue outlook for the current quarter, warning of lower demand. Altera Corp also cut its fourth-quarter revenue outlook late Thursday. Texas Instruments fell 5.1 percent to $28.40, while Altera was off 5.1 percent to $33.67.

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed in October to its lowest in 10 months, as expected, according to a report from the Commerce Department. Futures didn't move after the data.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers preliminary December consumer sentiment index will come at 9:55 a.m. EST. Economists predicted a reading of 65.5, compared with 64.1 in the final November report.

Wall Street fell sharply on Thursday after the ECB dashed hopes of a financial bazooka to contain the crisis. The S&P and Nasdaq each fell about 2 percent, while the Dow was off more than 1 percent.

(Reporting By Ryan Vlastelica; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)