BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Early signs from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might be opening lower on Friday. Producer Price Index, Consumer Sentiment Report and a set of Fed Speeches are the major focus.
Asian shares finished mostly lower and European shares are trading down.
As of 7.45 am ET, the Dow futures were losing 122.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were down 15.00 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were declining 57.50 points.
U.S. stocks ended mostly lower on Thursday. The Dow crept up 10.92 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 26,191.22, the Nasdaq slid 39.87 points or 0.5 percent to 7,530.88 and the S&P 500 fell 7.06 points or 0.3 percent to 2,806.83.
On the economic front, the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Producer Price Index for October will be issued at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for growth of 0.2 percent, unchanged from last year.
New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams will make welcome and framing remarks at a conference to launch the book 'Investing in America's Workforce: Improving Outcomes for Workers and Employers' in New York at 8.30 am ET. Later at 8.50 am ET, Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick Harker will participate in a panel discussion on 'Workforce Investment by Sector.'
Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Randal Quarles will deliver remarks on the current and future state of financial regulation and participate in a fireside chat at Brookings in Washington DC, with audience Q&A at 9.00 am ET.
The University of Michigan's Consumer Survey Center's Consumer Sentiment report for November will be issued at 10.00 am ET.
The Commerce Department's Wholesale Trade for September will be released at 10.00 am ET. Consensus is for decline in inventories to 0.3 percent vessus 1 percent last month.
Baker-Hughes Rig Count for the week will be revealed at 1.00 pm ET. In the prior week, the North American Rig Count was 1265, and U.S. Rig Count was 1067.
In the corporate sector, II-VI Inc., engineered materials and optoelectronic components provider, said it agreed to acquire Finisar Corp., a technology leader in optical communications, in a cash and stock transaction with an equity value of about $3.2 billion.
Asian stocks ended broadly lower on Friday. China's Shanghai Composite index fell 1.39 percent to 2,598.87. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slumped 2.39 percent to close at 25,601.92. Consumer prices in China rose 2.5 percent year-on-year in October, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a report. That was in line with expectations and unchanged from the September reading.
Japanese markets fell as dismal inflation data from China as well as lingering concerns of slowing growth pulled down shares of companies that have large exposure to China. The Nikkei average tumbled 236.67 points or 1.05 percent to close at 22,250.25. The broader Topix index ended down 0.49 percent at 1,672.98.
Australian markets edged lower but scored their second week of gains. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index slipped 0.11 percent to 5,921.80 but ended the week up more than 1 percent. The broader All Ordinaries index finished little changed with a negative bias at 6,011.
European shares are trading lower. Among the major indexes in the region, the CAC 40 Index of France is falling 47.58 points or 0.91 percent. The German DAX is losing 63.59 points or 0.55 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is declining 65.61 points or 0.92 percent. The Swiss Market Index is down 56.25 points or 0.61 percent.
The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is down 0.82 percent.
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