U.S. stock futures were mostly lower on Wednesday after Alcoa's worse-than-forecast first quarter, though insurers rose on hopes for government assistance and builders advanced after an industry merger. S&P 500 futures eased 2.3 points to 811.70 and futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 26 points. Futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 rose, however, climbing 4.75 points to 1,285.50. U.S. stocks on Tuesday slumped for a second day on the eve of earnings season, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipping 186 points, the Nasdaq Composite shedding 45 points and the S&P 500 dropping 19 points. Alcoa down about 80% over the last year, edged higher in pre-market trade after reporting a worse-than-forecast $497 million first-quarter loss. Merrill Lynch analysts reiterated an underperform rating on the Dow industrials component, saying aluminum fundamentals look challenging and that the stock is fully valued at 1.3 times tangible book value. Shares of Sharp skidded in Tokyo after the electronics maker lowered its earnings forecast for the fiscal year that ended in March. German car maker Daimler said that it expects earnings to gradually improve over the course of 2009 after a "significant loss" in the first quarter, and the stock rose 3% in pre-market trade after being upgraded to buy from neutral at Goldman Sachs. Juniper Networks Inc. rose 7% after the networking-gear provider lowered its expenses estimate, though it also lowered its sales estimates. The builders sector will get attention as Pulte Homes said it was buying Centex in an all-stock deal worth $1.3 billion, or $3.1 billion when excluding assumed debt. Centex shares rallied 31% in pre-market trade. Pulte slipped 2.5%. KB Home rose over 5%. Life insurers may be active as The Wall Street Journal reported that the Treasury Department has decided to extend bailout funds to the industry. Some insurers have already converted into savings-and-loans to qualify for funds. The Hartford rose 27% in pre-market trade, and Prudential added 12%. The euro edged 0.3% lower against the U.S. dollar. Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher, speaking in Tokyo, said that the downside risk to the dollar is limited because the problems for the euro zone were bigger than those in the U.S. Minutes from the last Federal Reserve interest-rate setting meeting will be released in the afternoon, giving the market more information on the decision to buy $300 billion of government bonds. Washington also will be eyed for news from the Securities and Exchange Commission, which votes on rules to reinstate some version of the uptick rule that previously forced short-sellers to wait for a stock to rise before initiating a trade. Oil futures dropped $1.07 to $48.08 a barrel ahead of weekly energy inventories. Yields on 10-year Treasury bonds fell 2 basis points to 2.88%. Yields move in the opposite direction to prices. In Asia, the news out of Alcoa and Sharp hurt markets, with the Nikkei 225 sliding 2.7% in Tokyo and the S&P/ASX 200 down 2.3% in Sydney. In Europe, oil and metals producers dragged the markets lower, with the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 dropping 0.1% and the FTSE 100 falling 0.3% in London.

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