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Stocks Seen Steady Ahead of Oil, GDP Data
September 29, 2004 07:02:00 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks looked to open little changed on Wednesday, a day after staging a late rally on heavy machinery maker Caterpillar Inc.'s (CAT) raised sales forecast, but high oil prices will remain on investors' minds ahead of U.S. crude inventories data.
Shares of online travel site Orbitz Inc. (ORBZ) will be eyed after surging late on Tuesday following news that travel and real estate heavyweight Cendant Corp. (CD) is nearing a deal to buy the company.
S&P 500 futures inched up 0.40 point, even with fair value accounting for interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract.
Dow Jones industrial index futures were up 3 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures inched up 2 points.
U.S. stock futures have gained throughout the morning.
``Again, all eyes are on the price of oil,'' said Alex Scott, market strategist Seven Investment Management. ``The mood in Europe is reasonably strong,'' Scott said, adding that the move up in European stocks may lift U.S. stocks at the open.
``I also think investors will be watching for some reasonably important GDP data,'' Scott said. The Commerce Department releases its final estimate of second quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth at 8:30 a.m. EDT.
U.S. light crude (CLc1) surged to a record high of $50.47 a barrel on Tuesday but was down 28 cents in electronic trading to $49.62 a barrel on Wednesday.
Data issued by the Energy Information Administration at 10:30 a.m. EDT is expected to show a fall in U.S. crude stocks for the ninth straight week after stormy weather slowed a recovery in output and shipments in the Gulf of Mexico following disruptions from Hurricane Ivan.
Investors fear higher oil prices will pinch profit margins of fuel guzzlers such as airlines and of manufacturers who use crude as a raw material, as well as curb consumer spending.
Micron Technology (MU), Immucor (BLUD) and McCormick & Co. (MKC) are among the companies reporting results.
Shares of U.S. oil company ConocoPhillips (COP) may be watched after it won an auction for a 7.6 percent state stake in Russian oil giant LUKOIL (LKOH.RTS) with a bid of $1.988 billion.
U.S. cable television programmer Liberty Media Corp. (L) may move on a report in Belgian daily Financial daily De Tijd that it will acquire a 21.4 percent stake in Belgian cable operator Telenet.
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 88.86 points, or 0.89 percent, at 10,077.40. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index ended up 6.54 points, or 0.59 percent, at 1,110.06. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index ended up 9.99 points, or 0.54 percent, at 1,869.87.
© 2004 Reuters
