(Reuters) - Stock index futures pointed to a higher opening on Wall Street on Tuesday, adding to the previous session's sharp gains in the wake of the bailout of troubled mortgage firms Fannie Mae (FNM.N) and Freddie Mac (FRE.N) and as a drop in oil prices eases worries over inflation and corporate costs.

* By 5:48 a.m. EDT, S&P 500 futures, Dow Jones futures and Nasdaq 100 futures are up between 0.2 percent and 0.6 percent.

* Stock markets worldwide rose sharply on Monday, led by financials as investors applauded the U.S. government's move to rescue the two big mortgage financiers.

* A senior International Monetary Fund official said on Tuesday the U.S. government's move to take control of the two firms will help shore up the housing market, the banking system and the wider economy.

* U.S. crude oil futures fell back toward a five-month low, resuming a near two-week drop as strength in the U.S. dollar drove investors away from commodities.

* On the M&A front, shares in German drugs and chemicals group Bayer (BAYG.DE) gained 3 percent as traders cited market talk of takeover interest from U.S. rival Pfizer (PFE.N). Pfizer was not immediately available for comment.

* NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co (GE.N), is teaming up with Google Inc (GOOG.O) on a multi-year partnership in which Google will act as a broker to sell TV advertising on some NBC cable channels.

* Top cellphone maker Nokia (NOK1V.HE) has opened up its media sharing site and games offering on Facebook and is looking to broaden ties with the fast-growing social networking site. Separately, Nokia's Internet offering is far from ready and the world's top cellphone maker is seeking further acquisitions to speed up roll out of new services, Niklas Savander, the head of the unit, said in an interview.

* Lenovo Group (0992.HK), the world's fourth-largest PC maker, has no plans to buy computer factories from rival Dell Inc (DELL.O), its Chief Executive William Amelio said.

* Companies reporting earnings on Tuesday include AEP Industries (AEPI.O) and Ocean Power Technologies (OPTT.O).

* Economic indicators on Tuesday include pending home sales for July.

(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Paul Bolding)

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