U.S. stock index futures pointed to a higher opening on Wall Street Friday.

Friday marks the so-called quadruple witching — the quarterly occurrence of the expiration of option contracts and futures contracts on market indexes used by program traders — which could result in some volatility for stocks.

Shares of blue chips Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) could lead the way after positive analysts’ comments, according to S&P MarketScope.

European financial stocks rose on reports the European Union plans to create a super-regulator.

Meanwhile, a news report in the China Daily said that an ex-central bank governor indicated China could still be a buyer of Treasuries if the dollar stabilized.

Ten-year Treasury notes were lower in price Friday morning amid concerns about an expanding supply of government debt on the market. The dollar index was lower. Gold futures were up modestly. Oil futures jumped above $72 amid hopes that a bottoming economy will fuel demand.

There was little in the way of U.S. economic news Friday. Traders were looking ahead to events next week: the two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting on June 23-24 for hints on the Fed’s stance regarding the direction of interest rates, and to the Treasury’s auction of $104 billion in notes.

Among companies in the news Friday, Research in Motion (RIMM) posted first-quarter earnings per share under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) of $1.12, vs. $0.84 one year earlier, on a 53% revenue rise. The maker of BlackBerry handheld devices posted adjusted first-quarter EPS of $0.98. RIM sees second-quarter revenue of $3.45 billion-$3.70 billion and EPS of $0.94-$1.03. The company’s guidance was seen as disappointing, according to S&P MarketScope.

Sealy Corp. (ZZ) provided a preliminary second-quarter forecast in which it expects sales of $294 million-$301 million, income from operations of $28 million-$30 million, with the higher end of the revenue estimate reportedly above Street forecasts, and income from operations well above the Street consensus. The mattress maker said its comprehensive refinancing plan, which was announced on May 13, 2009, is expected to be completed in July, 2009. Following completion of refinancing, Sealy does not intend to provide preliminary information relating to its financial results for future periods.