RTRS: Futures point to weaker opening on Wall Street
* U.S. stock futures pointed to a weaker opening on Wall Street on Thursday. Futures for the Dow Jones DJc1, S&P S&P and Nasdaq NDc1 are between 0.3 and 0.8 percent lower at 0955 GMT.
* U.S. stocks rose in a choppy session on Wednesday as a rebound in oil prices and other commodities lifted energy, mining and materials shares, offsetting nervousness over whether Washington will agree on a bailout for ailing car makers. The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rose 0.8 percent, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 1.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC rose 1.2 percent.
* A proposal to bail out the big three U.S. automakers -- General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Ford Motor Co (F.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), and Chrysler LLC -- passed the House of Representatives but its prospects looked grim in the Senate where supporters faced an uphill struggle on Thursday to keep it alive.
* The CEO of insurer AIG (AIG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which is looking to shed assets around the globe as part of a $152 billion U.S. government rescue package, said that difficult markets may delay the sale plans, though certain units have attracted heavy interest.
* Weekly jobless claims data is likely to confirm that the labour market is weakening.
* Import and export price data is also due.
* Communications equipment maker Ciena (CIEN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is expected to report fourth-quarter EPS of $0.05, down from $0.48 a year ago.
* Cabot Corp (CBT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares fell nearly 2 percent in extended trade on Wednesday after the chemical maker cut its 2009 capital expenditure by about $50 million. The company said the cuts were due to weak demand expected in the first quarter of 2009. [ID:nWNAB1587]
* Eli Lilly (LLY.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) has its annual meeting with industry analysts and investors in New York, at which it is expected to discuss plans to integrate recently acquired biotech ImClone Systems and provide an update on an ongoing FDA review of its potential blockbuster blood-clot preventer Prasugrel. (Reporting by Brian Gorman; Editing by Hans Peters)
