US Stock Futures Lower Before Fed's Beige Book
By POLYA LESOVA
U.S. stock-index futures dropped on Wednesday, pointing to a second session of losses for Wall Street, as investors awaited a report from the Federal Reserve for more evidence on the health of the American economy.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 25 points to 10313 and S&P 500 futures declined 2.9 points to 1088.30. Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 2 points to 1855.50.
The blue-chip Dow index dropped 1% on Tuesday, snapping a four-session winning streak.
"Most eyes will be on [the] publication of the Fed's Beige Book as a measure of the current economic outlook--which some fear will be less than optimistic," said Ben Critchley, London-based sales trader at IG Index, in a note to clients.
The Federal Reserve will release its Beige Book at 2 p.m., EDT. Consumer credit for July and a speech by Narayana Kocherlakota, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, are also on the calendar.
The Bank of Canada is expected to announce its decision on interest rates.
In the energy sector, BP PLC (BP) is scheduled to release its internal investigation report on the causes of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Investors will be waiting to see where BP lays the blame for the disastrous spill.
Smithfield Foods Inc. (SFD) and Talbots Inc. (TLB) are among the companies scheduled to report quarterly results.
Most Asian stock markets ended lower on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average index dropping 2.2%.
U.K. mobile telecoms giant Vodafone Group PLC (VOD, VOD.LN) said it's selling its entire 3.2% stake in China Mobile Ltd. (CHL) in a deal that will generate 4.3 billion pounds ($6.6 billion) before taxes and costs.
European stocks fell in intraday trading, once again pressured by worries over the health of the continent's banks. Also souring sentiment were data showing that Germany's exports dropped in July from the previous month.
The U.K. FTSE 100 index fell 0.7% in intraday trading, as shares of banking group Barclays PLC (BCS) slipped 3.4%.
The British pound gained 0.7% to $1.5446, buoyed by a report showing U.K. housing prices unexpectedly rose in August.
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