Stocks are indicated modestly higher following a brutal sell-off the week before. After losing 4.1 percent and suffering its biggest weekly loss since March, stock index futures hint at a possible 40 or 50-point early gain for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Stock index futures edged higher after last week’s big losses and amid relatively quiet trading in overseas markets Monday. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei slipped .7 percent and Hong Kong Hang Seng lost .6 percent. Benchmarks are flat across much of Europe in midday action.

In the US, investors seem to be growing a bit more confident that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will be reappointed to a second term. The Fed Chairman’s term ends Sunday and uncertainty about the reappointment seemed to weigh on trading last week. However, some of those concerns seem to be easing, helping to lift stock index futures early Monday.

The Bernanke decision comes the same week as the Federal Reserve meets to discuss monetary policy, with a rate announcement scheduled for Wednesday.

In the US, a report on existing home sales is due at 10:00 a.m. eastern time. Economists expect the report to show a decline to an annual rate of 5.9 million in December, from 6.54 million the month before.

Bonds are holding modest losses ahead of the news and as players watch for a potential rebound in equities. The benchmark ten-year Treasury is down 5/32nd and yields 3.63 percent.

Meanwhile, the dollar hasn’t moved much — trading flat at 90.30 against the yen. The euro slipped .0018 to 1.4141 against the buck.

Action in the commodities market is mixed. Crude oil slipped .21 to $74.33 and gold added $5.5 to $1095.20 an ounce.

Among the stocks to watch, AK Steel (AKS) is up 3 percent after reporting a quarterly profit of 36 cents per share, or 16 cents better than Street estimates. Halliburton (HAL) slipped 1 percent, even after positing earnings and revenues that beat expectations. Apple (AAPL) is likely to see a lot of action ahead of earnings due out after the closing bell and in anticipation of the new tablet expected later this week.