US stock futures up in volatile trade; Yellen OK after medical attention

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen steps away from the podium after struggling to finish her speech at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Massachusetts September 24, 2015. Fed chair Janet Yellen was receiving medical attention on Thursday after struggling to finish a speech at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, coughing and stopping to recompose herself several times before walking off stage. - REUTERS

NEW YORK: U.S. stock futures were slightly higher in volatile trading at the start of the overnight session following comments by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and news that she was receiving medical attention after the speech in which she struggled to finish her last lines.

A spokesman for the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where the speech was held, said later that Yellen was expected to resume her schedule Thursday and attend a planned dinner.

Among other comments, Yellen said she expects the Fed to raise interest rates later this year.

S&P 500 e-mini futures were down 0.2 percent at the start of the overnight session but later turned slightly higher and were last up 0.4 percent.

Investors had been cautious on Thursday ahead of the speech, awaiting clues on the timing for the first rate hike in almost a decade.- Reuters