Futures lower on setback in Greek bailout talks
Stock index futures fell on Friday as the latest setback in Greek negotiations for a financial bailout package put the S&P 500 on track to snap a three-day winning streak.
Workers in Greece went on strike to oppose fiscal reform measures, while euro-zone finance ministers said the fiscally troubled nation will need to make more cuts in order for them to grant bailout funds.
Stocks rose modestly on Thursday to push the S&P up 7.5 percent for the year after an apparent deal was reached between Greek parties on reforms, leaving equities primed for a pullback.
Back to the drawing board with Greece again, but the market isn't over reacting negatively to that, said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York.
The market has already discounted a deal, the market isn't expecting a disorderly default and the market has had a nice run up and needs to digest and consolidate.
European shares fell as the request for further cuts in Greece put the deal in jeopardy, with the FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index of top European shares down 0.9 percent.
Bank shares dropped on concerns over the latest stumbling block in the debt crisis. The STOXX Europe 600 euro zone Banking Index <.SX7E> fell 2.2 percent. Bank of America Corp
S&P 500 futures fell 11.5 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures lost 72 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 20.75 points.
Adding to the dour tone, China's imports fell in January, the most since the depths of the financial crisis, raising concerns demand may be wilting more than previously thought, even accounting for shutdowns over the Lunar New Year.
U.S. economic data expected Friday includes December international trade figures from the Commerce Department at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT). Economists expect a trade deficit of $48.0 billion in December versus a deficit of $47.75 billion in November.
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers is due at 9:55 a.m. (1455 GMT). February's preliminary consumer sentiment index is expected to dip to 74.5 from 75.0 in the final January report.
Chinese e-commerce group Alibaba plans to take private its Hong Kong-listed unit, two sources familiar with the matter said, as part of a complex deal that would strengthen founder Jack Ma's control and give key stakeholder Yahoo
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As earnings season moves into its final weeks, 339 companies in the S&P 500 have reported results through Thursday morning, with 63 percent topping analyst expectations, according to Thomson Reuters data, tracking below recent quarters through this stage of the earnings season.
(Reporting By Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Padraic Cassidy)
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