RTRS: US STOCKS-Futures slip on worry about consumer, energy
By Kristina Cooke
NEW YORK, Nov 28 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures slipped in thin holiday trade on Friday after a four-day streak of gains as investors nervously eyed the post-Thanksgiving sales for clues on how retailers will fare this holiday season in a deteriorating economy.
Exxon Mobil (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares dipped 1 percent before the bell, as oil fell below $54 a barrel, on course to end the month down more than 20 percent, as OPEC ministers prepared to meet in Cairo to discuss potential further supply cuts to combat a global fall in demand.
The U.S. stock market was closed Thursday for the Thanksgiving holiday and is trading for half the day on Friday. On Wednesday, stocks ended higher, capping a four-day rally which marked the Dow's biggest four-day percentage gain since 1932.
For the month, the Dow is down more 6 percent, the S&P 500 down more than 8 percent and Nasdaq down 10 percent.
In Europe, shares fell, led lower by energy and mining stocks. In Asia, stocks rose for a sixth consecutive session as bargain-hunting investors hoped policy changes would stimulate a deteriorating world economy.
Stores across America hope to ring in billions of dollars in holiday sales beginning on the "Black Friday", the day after Thanksgiving. But retailers fear a looming recession and mounting job losses could cost them dearly during the period that brings in up to 40 percent of annual sales.
The holiday weekend will test the strength of consumer sentiment, a main driver of the U.S. economy, as the country faces its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.
S&P 500 futures SPc1 fell 8 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 DJc1 declined 50 points, and Nasdaq 100 NDc1 shed 14 points.
There is no U.S. economic data due to be released on Friday, nor any major companies scheduled to report earnings.
U.S. stocks climbed on Wednesday, as investors snapped up tech stocks trading near their cheapest levels in five years, and renewed hopes of a General Motors bailout helped investors shrug off data depicting a worsening global economic downturn. (Reporting by Kristina Cooke; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
