U.S. stock index futures were slightly lower on Tuesday as investors digested earnings from retailers and awaited a report expected to show U.S. industrial production rose for a fourth straight month.

* Home Depot Inc (HD.N) reported third-quarter profit that topped expectations as cost cuts offset weak sales. But the top home improvement chain said it was contending with a great deal of pressure in its markets.

* The government is expected to report industrial production climbed by 0.4 percent in October, according to a survey of economists, but at a slower pace than in the previous month as investors watch for signs the economic recovery is taking hold. The data is due at at 9:15 EST (1415 GMT).

* Investors are also watching U.S. monthly producer prices data due at 8:30 EST (1330 GMT). Prices at the factory gate are expected to have ticked up 0.5 percent in October after a surprise fall in the previous month.

* Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners in New York, said investors would be taking profits after a strong run that pushed major indexes to 13-month closing highs on Monday, but said industrial production numbers could reverse that.

Any good news out there could cut short profit taking, he said. The trend is higher for equites.

* S&P 500 futures SPc1 fell 1.8 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 DJc1 dipped 10 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures NDc1 dropped 3.25 points.

* Target Corp (TGT.N) will present its quarterly scorecard before the opening bell. The budget retailer is expected to post earnings of 50 cents per share, up from 49 cents a year ago.

* Billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) revealed new investments in Nestle (NESN.VX) and Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) on Monday, and said it nearly doubled its investment in Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N).

* Investor George Soros's hedge fund reported holdings of $6.2 billion during the third quarter, an increase of $2 billion, after taking a stake in Ford Motor Co (F.N) and boosting holdings in communications services stocks.

* The U.S. dollar recovered slightly from 15-month lows in the previous session, pressuring oil and other commodities that helped drive Wall Street higher Monday.

* Oil CLc1 fell 0.7 percent after gaining 3 percent in the last session. The U.S. dollar climbed 0.6 percent against a basket of currencies .DXY.

* U.S. stocks rose broadly on Monday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke reinforced expectations that interest rates would stay low to spur growth.

U.S.