Welcome
Stocks were set for a mostly lower open Tuesday as investors looking to restart last week's rally await government reports on the housing market and inflation.
At 8:15 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P futures were down modestly, while the Nasdaq futures made slight gains.
Futures measure current index values against the perceived future performance. Futures can be used as a forecast for trading activity after the bell, though they're not always accurate.
0:00 /04:02'Starting to form the bottom'
On Monday, stocks couldn't sustain earlier gains, snapping a four-session winning streak. The Dow lost 7 points, the S&P was down 0.4% and the Nasdaq fell nearly 2% as tech stocks faltered.
"The market is trying to hold on to the gains, so it needs to trade within narrow levels, unless we have some earth shattering news, one way or another," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist for Avalon Partners.
Global markets on Tuesday were mixed. In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei index surged 3.2%. The European markets were lower in midday trading.
Economy: The government issues key reports on housing and inflation before the markets open.
Housing starts are expected to have fallen in February to a 450,000 annual rate in February from 466,000 the previous month, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. Building permits are expected to have dropped to a 500,000 annual rate from 531,000 in January.
The Producer Price Index (PPI), a measure of wholesale inflation, is forecast to have risen 0.4% in February, according to the Briefing.com consensus, after rising 0.8% in the previous month. The so-called core PPI, which strips volatile food and energy prices, is expected to be up 0.1% after climbing 0.4% in the previous month.
The Fed's policy-making body begins a two-day meeting. It's expected to hold interest rates steady near zero percent, and determine the best ways to help kick the economy out of the recession.
Companies: The aluminum company Alcoa (AA, Fortune 500) said it slashed its dividend by 82% on Monday, in an effort to reduce costs by $2.4 billion annually. This includes the ongoing plan to cut 13,500 jobs by the end of the year. Alcoa shares were down 12% in premarket trading.
Retailer Target (TGT, Fortune 500) is facing a proxy fight, as shareholder William Ackerman is pushing to nominate five board seats. Target shares rose 2% in premarket trading.
Oil and money: Oil prices edged down 3 cents a barrel to $47.32. The dollar rose versus the euro, the British pound and the yen.
