U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open Monday, in the wake of a negative week for the major indexes as investors braced for the next batch of earnings and data on the state of the housing market.
European shares were mostly lower with financials leading the decline. Asian stocks ended largely in the red, but Chinese stocks put in a strong performance.
Japanese stocks lost ground after gross domestic product data showed the nation's economy had slowed faster than expected as the relatively strong yen continued to dent exporters.
In the U.S. the National Association of Home Builders is due to release the latest figures from its index at 10 am New York time, which will give a snapshot of the health of the sector in August. The results are ahead of July's housing starts data, which is released Tuesday.
On the earnings front, retailer Lowe's and food-distribution company Sysco are among the companies due to report results before the opening bell. After the bell earnings include retailer Urban Outfitters and scientific-instrument maker Agilent.
GROUP OF SECURITIES
LOW19.59
-0.15-0.76%13,768,400
SYY29.98
-0.23-0.76%3,200,421
URBN30.90
-0.71-2.25%2,632,850
A27.35
-0.18-0.65%2,438,024
In other news, a clause in the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill means that many banks could be set to buy back Trups, equity instruments that pay interest like bonds, before they lose their status as tier-one capital.
And in the technology sector, an Apple [AAPL 249.10 -2.69 (-1.07%) ] manager was arrested Friday and indicted in an alleged kickback scheme involving Asian suppliers of accessories for the iPhone and iPod.
