Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead of Data

By Matt Jarzemsky 

U.S. stock futures edged lower Friday as investors awaited readings on consumer spending and confidence.

More than an hour before the opening bell, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures dipped 10 points, or 0.1%, to 16671.

S&P 500 futures edged down two points, or 0.1%, to 1916, while Nasdaq-100 futures eased two points, or 0.1%, to 3733. Changes in stock futures prices don't always accurately predict stock moves after the opening bell.

The S&P 500 and the Dow are on pace to cap their second-straight weekly gains and their fourth-straight monthly advances. A better-than-expected first-quarter earnings season and improving readings on employment, manufacturing and other segments of the economy have had investors sticking with bullish bets of late.

Friday brings readings on income and spending in the U.S. Economists forecast government data on personal income will show a 0.4% advance for April, according to a Wall Street Journal poll. Consumer spending is expected to have risen 0.1% for the month while the core PCE index, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation, is seen rising 0.2%.

Later on Friday morning, the Thomson Reuters and University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for May is expected to show a final reading of 82.5, up from the month's preliminary estimate of 81.8.

Write to Matt Jarzemsky at [e-mail]