Futures flat ahead of data; Apple drags on techs
Post# of 102244
MADRID (MarketWatch) — U.S. stock market futures largely hugged the flat line on Monday ahead of a gauge of manufacturing for the New York region on a light data day, as investors weighed news of potential progress over U.S. debt negotiations.
Techs were the exception, though, with shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) coming under pressure after a Citigroup downgrade.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (CBE JH3) rose 20 points to 13,107, while those for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index (GLC:SPH3) rose 3.1 points to 1,412.30.
Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index (CME:NDH3) fell 5.5 points to 2,617.75. Pressure on the Nasdaq came as shares of tech heavyweight Apple shed 1.5% in premarket U.S. trading.
Questioning the strength of the iPhone 5, Citigroup analysts cut their rating to neutral and revised their price target to $575 from $675.
On the economic front for Monday, investors will get the Empire state index tracking manufacturing activity in the New York region for December at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time. The index is expected to verge back into positive territory after a negative reading of 5.2 in November. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/stock-future...beforebell