U.S. stocks were poised to open slightly higher amid the latest report on the number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits.

Economy: The number of Americans filing for their first week of unemployment benefits fell last week, pointing to slight improvement in the job market.

The number of initial claims fell to 421,000 in the week ending Dec. 4, down 17,000 from a revised 438,000 claims filed the week before, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The weekly figure beat analyst forecasts of 429,000 for the week.

After the opening bell, the Commerce Department will release a report on wholesale inventories that is expected to show inventories fell to 0.7%, from 1.5% in October.

Companies: Howard Stern announced that he has re-signed with SiriusXM (SIRI) Radio for five years, sending Sirius' stock surging 11% in premarket trade.

After the market close, Green Mountain Coffee (GMCR) is expected to report an earnings per share of 20 cents, down from the 34 cents per share it reported a year ago.