Posted by
alfredlester on Friday, October 29, 2010 7:06:28 PM
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures eased on Friday as equities continued to take their cue from moves in the dollar, while the first reading on third-quarter economic growth was due later in the morning.
Stocks have traded sideways through the week with investors wary of taking significant bets ahead of next week&&9;s elections and a likely announcement of more stimulus from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The gross domestic product report will add to the debate over the size and timing of expected further quantitative easing from the Fed.
The report is forecast to show GDP expanded at a 2 percent annual rate, compared with 1.7 percent in the second quarter, according to a Reuters survey of economists.
The greenback steadied heading into the data, which is due at 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT). The dollar index (.DXY) added 0.3 percent. The dollar and stocks have developed an inverse relationship of late, though that has weakened somewhat this week.
On the earnings front, investors will take in results from some big names, including Chevron Corp (CVX.N).
Microsoft Corp (MSFT same day payday loans.O) reported profit that beat expectations late Thursday on higher sales of its flagship software. Its shares were up 3.6 percent at &&6;27.23 before the opening bell.
S&P 500 futures slipped 5.1 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 30
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures gave up 4.75 points.
Stocks ended little changed on Thursday as investors took a cautious track. The S&P 500 is up 0.1 percent for the week so far. Since the beginning of September, the S&P 500 is up almost 13 percent.
Also on the data front, the final reading of the October consumer sentiment index is due at 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT). Economists expect a reading of 68.0, compared with 67.9 in the preliminary October report.
(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
Stock futures ease with GDP on tap