MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks: Futures Point To Fifth Day Of Losses

By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

GDP data and consumer sentiment are also on tap

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks were poised for a fifth straight day in the red on Friday, with futures nudging lower as investors waited to see whether Janet Yellen will shed more light on the timing of the Federal Reserve's next rate hike.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) dropped 45 points, or 0.3%, to 17,559, while those for the S&P 500 index (ESM5) lost 4.25 points, or 0.2%, to 2,044. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index (NQM5) fell 7.75 points, or 0.2%, to 4,303.50.

On Thursday, the benchmarks dropped for a fourth day (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) in a row, with the S&P 500 index (SPX) turning negative for the year and recording its longest losing streak since January. The weakness seen this week comes on the back of airstrikes in the Middle East, concerns over poor earnings prospects and worries that the Fed is moving closer to a rate hike.

Yellen speech: Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen speaks at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Conference on "the New Normal for Monetary Policy" just before the closing bell. The central bank last week dropped the word "patient" from its statement, but Yellen stressed the Fed is in no hurry to raise rates. Her speech starts at 3:45 p.m. Eastern Time.

Data: Ahead of the open, investors will get fresh growth data to chew on. The third estimate of GDP growth in the fourth quarter is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. It's forecast to come in at 2.4%, up from the previous reading of 2.2%.

At 9:55 a.m. Eastern Time, the final reading on the University of Michigan's consumer-sentiment index for March comes out. It's expected to have risen to 92.5 from the flash estimate of 91.2, according to economists polled by MarketWatch.

Stocks to watch:GameStop Corp.(GME) slid 5.8% premarket after the videogame retailer's quarterly results and outlook fell short of Wall Street estimates (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/gamestop-shares-decline-on-earnings-outlook-2015-03-26). The report came out late Thursday.

Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc.(RH) might also move after the company late Thursday said fourth-quarter earnings (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/restoration-hardwares-stock-rallies-after-profit-sales-top-estimates-2015-03-26) rose 60% year-over-year.

Shares of Orexigen Therapeutics Inc.(OREX) surged 14% ahead of the market open after the biotech firm received a green light from European regulators for its Mysimba diet drug.

Ahead of the bell on Friday, BlackBerry Ltd. (RIMM) is projected to report a loss of 4 cents a share in the fourth quarter, according to a consensus survey by FactSet.

Carnival Corp.(CCL) is forecast to report first-quarter earnings of 9 cents a share.

Finish Line Inc.(FINL) is expected to post fourth-quarter earnings of 85 cents a share.

Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN) was also in the spotlight, as Forbes reported that the negotiations to buy luxury-online retailer Net-a-Porter (http://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanmac/2015/03/26/amazons-purchase-of-luxury-retailer-net-a-porter-far-from-certain-but-talks-on-going/) could still fall apart.

Other markets: Crude-oil futures (CLK5) pared back more than 2% (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/crude-oil-prices-fall-as-yemen-conflict-escalates-2015-03-27) after logging a five-day winning streak on Thursday. Those moves came after Saudi Arabian airstrikes in Yemen raised fresh concerns over potential disruptions to crude supplies. For the week, the May contract was still looking at an 8% advance.

Metals prices dropped across the board, while the ICE dollar index (DXY) rose 0.3% to 97.73. Both Europe and Asian equity markets were mixed.

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