U.S. stock futures were lower early Tuesday morning, the day when one of the worst earnings season in decades is about to kick off. Financials, credit market and economy jitters only compound the bearish sentiment out there.On Monday, U.S. stocks ended lower despite starting the day with nice, solid gains as the price of oil dropped some $5 a barrel. But economic worries following a speech from a Federal Reserve official seeing more troubles to come, as well as worries about financial stocks and the credit market as capital concerns at Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) grew, brought in the bears. The Dow industrials ended dropping 56 points, or 0.5%, the Nasdaq Composite lost 2 points, or 0.09%, and the S&P 500 fell 10 points, or 0.84%. The S&P 500 is still slightly above bear market territory.
Today, much will depend on two speeches from Federal Reserve officials. First, at 8:30 a.m., Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to speak at a mortgage lending forum hosted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson is also slated to appear at the forum.
Also, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker is scheduled to speak about the U.S. economic outlook in Washington.
The speeches could sway market in different directions, but also some economic data released today could have an impact, especially May pending home sales and wholesale inventories scheduled for release at 10:00 a.m. EDT.
Today, much will depend on two speeches from Federal Reserve officials. First, at 8:30 a.m., Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to speak at a mortgage lending forum hosted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson is also slated to appear at the forum.
Also, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker is scheduled to speak about the U.S. economic outlook in Washington.
The speeches could sway market in different directions, but also some economic data released today could have an impact, especially May pending home sales and wholesale inventories scheduled for release at 10:00 a.m. EDT.
Meanwhile, oil held steady Tuesday despite a weaker dollar after a plunge of nearly $4 in the previous session caused by easing concerns over potential supply disruptions.
In corporate news, earnings season is about to kick off when Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) reports earnings after the close this evening. While expectations aren't high due to high commodity prices and weakening demand, investors may not react kindly to any bad surprises, including weak outlook statements.
And staying with the very gloomy mortgage sector, already hit Monday by Fannie and Freddie, Indymac Bancorp (NYSE: IMB) announced late Monday it will eliminate 3,800 jobs and stop making most home loans to try to improve its balance sheet, after regulators concluded it was no longer "well capitalized." IMB shares plunged over 32% in after-hours trading.
Finally, Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG) has already reported earnings this morning, mostly beating analyst estimates.
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