4:10 AM
Stock index futures signal sharp sell-off
Addison Ray
Tue Jul 12, 2011 5:24am EDT
(Reuters) Stock index futures pointed to a sharp fall in share prices on Tuesday after equities on Wall Street recorded their biggest fall in about a month in the previous session as concerns grew that the euro zone debt crisis could engulf other countries.
* Futures for the S&P 500, for the Dow Jones and for the Nasdaq 100 were down 1.1 to 1.2 percent.
* Peabody Energy (BTU.N) and ArcelorMittal (ISPA.AS) are likely to succeed with their $5 billion takeover offer for Macarthur Coal (MCC.AX), investors bet on Tuesday, driving up shares in the world's biggest producer of pulverized coal by 37 percent.
* Euro zone finance ministers on Monday promised cheaper loans, longer maturities and a more flexible rescue fund to help Greece and other EU debtors in a bid to stop financial contagion engulfing Italy and Spain, but there are fears the rescue effort is unraveling. They will continue their meeting on Tuesday.
* As many as six Spanish banks have failed the European stress tests, including five savings banks and one medium-sized bank, ABC newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources.
* President Barack Obama and congressional leaders, struggling to break an impasse over taxes and spending cuts, will regroup on Tuesday to seek common ground for a deal to avoid a looming U.S. debt default.
Obama and top lawmakers from both political parties will hold their third meeting in as many days at the White House at 3:45 p.m. (1945 GMT) to hammer out elements of legislation to reduce the U.S. deficit and raise the debt ceiling by August 2.
* ICSC/Goldman Sachs will release at 1145 GMT chain store sales for the week ended July 9 versus the prior week. In the previous week, sales rose 1.5 percent.
* Alcoa Inc (AA.N) shares were up 1 percent after the bell on Monday as America's biggest aluminum producer posted a big jump in second-quarter profit, matching Wall Street estimates, partly due to soaring prices for the metal and alumina, its raw material.
* The Commerce Department releases May international trade figures at 1230 GMT. Economists forecast a $44.0 billion deficit compared with a $43.7 billion deficit in April.
* Allegations that former British prime minister Gordon Brown was a target of illegal data gathering by Rupert Murdoch's newspapers piled pressure on the media baron as he tried to prevent investors pulling out of his News Corp (NWSA.O) empire.
* At 1255 GMT, Redbook releases its Retail Sales Index of department and chain store sales for July versus June. In the prior period, sales were up 0.9 percent.
* The Federal Open Market Committee releases minutes from its June 21-22 meeting.
* Resource-related stocks will be in focus as crude oil fell for a third day on concerns about energy demand growth. Key base metals prices also dropped.
* The FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 index of top European shares is down 2 percent after falling 1.5 percent in the previous session on renewed worries about the euro zone peripheral debt crisis. Japan's Nikkei average .N225 lost 1.4 percent in its biggest fall in a month.
* On Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was down 151.44 points, or 1.20 percent, at 12,505.76 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX was down 24.31 points, or 1.81 percent, at 1,319.49. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 57.19 points, or 2.00 percent, at 2,802.62.
(Reporting by Atul Prakash; Editing by Erica Billingham)
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