MW: U.S. stocks: Futures fall as DuPont, Microsft disappoint; durables ahead
MADRID (MarketWatch) — A string of disappointing earnings weighed down U.S. stock futures early Tuesday, with Dow industrial futures trading close to session lows.
As investors waited for important durable-goods and housing data, shares of Microsoft Corp. DuPont and Procter & Gamble Co. were all down in premarket trading on earnings disappointment. Caterpillar Inc. and 3M Co. lie ahead.
Extending earlier losses, futures for the Dow industrials DJH5, -0.51% fell 115 points, or 0.7%, to 17,495 while those for the S&P 500 index SPH5, -0.63% lost 11.5 points, or 0.6%, to 2,041.80. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index NDH5, -0.60% dropped 29.25 points, or 0.7%, to 4,240.
A Northeast blizzard for the East Coast was downgraded on Tuesday as snowfall predications were pared back. The New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq will be open for business as usual on Tuesday, though trading volumes could be lighter, as many workers may not be able to reach their offices.
Monday’s session ended with choppy gains for Wall Street, with support coming from the lingering effects of the European Central Bank’s quantitative-easing program, announced last week.
Some downbeat news out of Europe, such as disappointing U.K. growth data and earnings from companies such as Seimens AG SIE, -2.86% were also putting some investors on the defensive, said Nour Al-Hammoury, chief market strategist at ADS Securities.
He said all eyes will be on durable-goods and housing data. Durable-goods for December is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, while Case-Shiller home prices for November are scheduled for 9 a.m. Eastern. New-home sales for December and consumer confidence for January are both set for release at 10 a.m. Eastern.
Read: Whether up or down, new-home sales were a disappointment last year
“Durable-goods orders has had its worst three months since 2012. Any disappointment today would clearly send a very strong message to the market, in contrast to the recent very upbeat State-of-the-Union address, which would increase doubt about a rate hike this year,” said Al-Hammoury in emailed comments.
