Futures Suggest Lower U.S. Open Thursday
09/11/08 - 06:53 AM EDT
Mike Taylor
Premarket futures were suggesting a lower open for stocks in New York Thursday as uncertainty about the wounded financial sector and sluggish economy persisted.
Futures for the S&P 500 were down 13 points at 1221 and were 13 points below fair value. Nasdaq futures were lower by 20 points at 1718 and were 30 short of fair value. On Wednesday, the major indices finished a choppy day with modest gains. Traders were focused on brokerage Lehman Brothers(LEH Quote - Cramer on LEH - Stock Picks) as it revealed potential solutions to its liquidity troubles. Washington Mutual (WM Quote - Cramer on WM - Stock Picks) shares took a significant hit on concerns that the thrift may default on some of its debt or fail to find a willing buyer. The Wall Street Journal Thursday reported that Lehman CEO Dick Fuld over the past week has been calling other financial firms to ensure they were still trading with his company. Fuld lately has been fighting rumors that Lehman will follow Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae(FNM Quote - Cramer on FNM - Stock Picks) and Freddie Mac (FRE Quote - Cramer on FRE - Stock Picks) as the next victim of the credit crisis, the report said. Separately, Fannie Mae, which along with Freddie Mac was nationalized by the government over the weekend, successfully issued $7 billion in two-year bonds as investors regained confidence in the mortgage company's credit. In the energy space, Petrobras (PBR Quote - Cramer on PBR - Stock Picks) said one of its fields contains between 3 billion and 4 billion barrels of oil. Mining equipment manufacturer Joy Global (JOYG Quote - Cramer on JOYG - Stock Picks) announced a $1 billion share buyback early Thursday. As for commodities, crude oil was down 94 cents at $101.64 a barrel. Gold lost $17.20 to $745.30.
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