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Fast food giant McDonald’s reported better than expected third quarter earnings and revenue figures on Thursday, sending its shares higher in pre-market trade.

McDonald’s said earnings per share came in at $1.40 in the three months ended September 30, beating expectations for earnings of $1.28 per share and up from earnings of $1.09 a share in the same period a year earlier.

The company’s third quarter revenue totaled $6.62 billion, above forecasts for sales of $6.41 billion but down 5.3% from revenue of $6.99 billion in the third quarter of 2014.

Global comparable sales increase of 4.0%, reflecting positive comparable sales in all segments.

In the U.S., third quarter comparable sales increased 0.9%, the segment's first quarterly comparable sales increase in two years.

Comparable sales for the International Lead Markets segment increased 4.6% for the third quarter led by strong performance in Australia, the U.K. and Canada and positive results in Germany.

"I am encouraged by our operating performance for the quarter, with positive comparable sales across all segments, including the U.S., as well as sales recovery in China following the prior year supplier issue," said McDonald's (N:MCD) President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Easterbrook.

Immediately after the earnings announcement, McDonald’s shares rallied $6.26, or 6.1%, to hit $109.20 in trading prior to the opening bell compared to Wednesday's closing price of $102.54.

Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open. The Dow futures rose 68 points, or 0.4%, the S&P 500 futures tacked on 8 points, or 0.37%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 20 points, or 0.44%.

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Big earnings day is coming.

Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1. Flood of earnings

A number of important earnings are coming through this morning from 3M (MMM), Caterpillar (CAT), Dunkin' Brands (DNKN), McDonald's (MCD) and Southwest Airlines (LUV).

United Continental (UAL) is also reporting this morning. These are the first results since the new interim CEO took over after CEO Oscar Munoz suffered a heart attack and took a medical leave of absence.

After the closing bell, AT&T (T, Tech30) will post its first results since merging with DirecTV. Google will issue its first results as Alphabet (GOOG). And the markets will hear from Amazon (AMZN, Tech30) and Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30).

In Europe, the parent company for Mercedes-Benz cars -- Daimler (DDAIY) -- reported record sales in the third quarter and strong growth in China. Many other automakers have experienced slower sales in China as the economy slows and the government cracks down on officials who make lavish purchases.

2. Market movers

eBay, Texas Instruments: Solid earnings reports on Wednesday afternoon from Texas Instruments (TXN) and eBay (EBAY) boosted their stock prices in after-hours trading. Both were up nearly 10%.

3. Stock market overview

U.S. stock futures are inching higher ahead of the open. But the mood could change depending on whether investors cheer or boo the latest quarterly results.

European markets are mixed in early trading.

Chinese stock markets closed the day with gains, but most other Asian markets took a dip.

4. Economics

The European Central Bank is announcing its interest rate and monetary policy decisions at 7:45 a.m. ET. It's highly unlikely to make any new moves but many economists think the bank will hint at printing more money in the future to combat deflation in the region.

"Markets seem positioned for a dovish outcome, perhaps via rhetoric setting the stage for stimulus expansion in December," said Ilya Spivak, a currency strategist at DailyFX.

In the U.S., weekly jobless claims figures will come from the federal government at 8:30 a.m. ET.

At 10 a.m., watch for new existing home sales data from September. The last report from the National Association of Realtor showed sales were down 4.8% in August.

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What is it? Although it's generally viewed as a lagging indicator, the number of unemployed people is an important signal of overall economic health because consumer spending is highly correlated with labor-market conditions. Unemployment is also a major consideration for those steering the country's monetary policy.

When? At 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is lower than the forecast, you can expect the USD to rise.

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What is it? It's the primary method the ECB uses to communicate with investors regarding monetary policy. It covers in detail the factors that affected the most recent interest rate and other policy decisions, such as the overall economic outlook and inflation. Most importantly, it provides clues regarding future monetary policy.

When? At 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the announcement will hint towards higher interest rates, you can expect the EUR to rise.

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What is it? It's the primary method the ECB uses to communicate with investors regarding monetary policy. It covers in detail the factors that affected the most recent interest rate and other policy decisions, such as the overall economic outlook and inflation. Most importantly, it provides clues regarding future monetary policy.

When? At 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is higher than the forecast, you can expect the CAD to rise.

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What is it? Short term interest rates are the paramount factor in currency valuation - traders look at most other indicators merely to predict how rates will change in the future.

When? At 7:45am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is higher than the forecast, you can expect the EUR to rise.

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1. U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday, boosted by strong quarterly results from industry heavyweights General Motors (N:GM) and Boeing (N:BA).

The Dow Jones industrial average (DJI) rose 45.36 points, or 0.26 percent, to 17,262.47, the S&P 500 (SPX) gained 6.71 points, or 0.33 percent, to 2,037.48 and the Nasdaq composite index (IXIC) added 22.38 points, or 0.46 percent, to 4,903.35.

2. Coca-Cola reported a bigger-than-expected drop in quarterly sales due to a strong dollar and the company said it expected the currency to hurt its full-year revenue more than previously anticipated.

The cola maker, which gets more than half of its total revenue from markets outside North America, said a strong dollar would lower its full-year revenue by 7 percentage points compared with 6 percentage points estimated earlier.

3. The euro held steady against the U.S. dollar on Wedmesday, as Tuesday's upbeat U.S. housing sector data continued to lend support to the greenback, while investors began to focus on the European Central Bank's monthly policy statement expected on Thursday.

EUR/USD hit 1.1386 during European afternoon trade, the session high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.1346.

The pair was likely to find support at 1.1303, the low of October 19 and resistance at 1.1412, the high of October 13.

4. The Bank of Canada kept its benchmark interest rate on hold in October, after already cutting rates twice this year, it announced on Wednesday.

The BoC said it was leaving its overnight cash rate unchanged at 0.50%, in line with expectations.

Inflation has evolved in line with the outlook in the Bank’s July Monetary Policy Report. Total CPI inflation remains near the bottom of the Bank’s target range, owing to declines in consumer energy prices.

5. Oil prices fell on Wednesday after a big build in U.S. crude inventories which fed concerns that demand may not be enough to absorb one of the largest global surpluses in modern times.

The American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday reported a rise in U.S. commercial crude stocks of 7.1 million barrels to 473 million barrels in the week to Oct. 16, trumping expectations for an increase of 3.9 million barrels.

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