GOOD MORNING. U.S. futures are mixed after Asian markets saw gains.

The tech sector was thrown a sharp curveball last week, but two industry heavyweights have a chance to restore some confidence to the sector when they report quarterly results Thursday after the market close.

Traders will be looking for signs of a pick-up in business and consumer technology spending when Dell (DELL) and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) report earnings and issue guidance.

Analysts predict year-over-year top- and bottom-line growth at both firms. They project Dell will report second-quarter earnings of 30 cents a share on $15.2 billion in revenue, up from 24 cents a share on $12.8 billion in revenue last year. As for H-P, analysts call for fiscal third-quarter earnings of $1.08 a share on revenues of $30.5 billion, up from 91 cents a share on revenue of $27.5 billion a year ago.

For both firms, an earnings release and a conference call could represent an opportunity to restore some lost confidence. At Dell, shares have lost more than half their value over the last two years, and investors faith in chief executive Michael Dell has begun to erode. At H-P, the sudden resignation of CEO Mark Hurd has left shareholders with new questions about the company s strategy.

The broader sector suffered a blow on Aug. 11 when Cisco (CSCO) set off alarm bells with its earnings report and disconcerting comments from CEO John Chambers.

"We are seeing a large number of mixed signals in both the market and from our customers' expectations, and we think the words 'unusual uncertainty' are an accurate description of what is occurring," Chambers said in a conference call with analysts.

The week before Cisco s release, H-P announced preliminary quarterly earnings of $1.08 a share, slightly better than analysts expected, and the firm lifted its revenue guidance. However, the results were overshadowed by the details of Hurd s resignation.

Cisco s warning left H-P investors more on edge, analysts say.

Now, investors will looking for hints of the H-P s post-Hurd strategy and how the shake-up will affect mergers and acquisitions, says Stifel Nicolaus analyst Aaron Rakers.

"Given that they ve already set their guidance for the full year ahead of Cisco s warning, investors will be watching for signs of a different dynamic," he says.

Rakers says he s also interested in the enterprise side of H-P s PC unit. "They ve had hiccups there on server businesses," he says.

At Dell, investors will be watching for how corporate spending on the replacement of fleets of PCs has progressed through the summer, says Morningstar analyst Michael Holt.

The company also may discuss its $1.15 billion acquisition of storage specialist 3Par (PAR) announced earlier this week and its strategy in cloud computing.

IN OTHER NEWS:

• The Securities and Exchange Commission, waged its first securities-fraud case against a state, alleging that New Jersey misled investors about the health of its two largest state pensions while selling billions of dollars in bonds. LINK
• U.S. consumers indicated in an annual survey that they are slightly more satisfied with their credit cards since new disclosure law went into effect in February. They said they were most pleased with American Express (AXP) -- their top pick for the fourth year in a row. LINK
• Procter & Gamble (PG) chief executive Robert McDonald is fighting to win back frugal shoppers with price cuts while moving into new countries, including Brazil and India. LINK