Weak Japan Data Weighs Down US Stock Futures

U.S. stock index futures point to a lower open Monday as investor confidence was dragged down by concerns about the weakening of the global economy following the fragile gross domestic product growth in Japan in the second quarter.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 0.28 percent, futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 index were down 0.28 percent and those on the Nasdaq 100 index were down 0.22 percent.

Japan's gross domestic product growth slowed down in the second quarter, reviving worries among investors. Japan's economy grew 0.3 percent in April-June, down from 1.2 percent in the first three months of the year due to a soft global demand and weak consumer spending, show the official data released Monday.

The continuing debt crisis in Europe and the tentative U.S. recovery have hurt the demand for Japanese exports. The dependence on Japanese government support is also worrying as a rise in tensions in the eurozone has hurt consumer and business confidence and is likely to weigh on the private sector spending as the government support weakens. The strengthening of the yen, especially due to global factors, is also worrying the Japanese economy.

On Friday, U.S. stocks gained, but investors remained cautious as China's trade data for July fell short of expectations. Market confidence was weighed down after China reported a trade surplus of $25.1 billion in July with the slower-than-expected growth in exports and imports. The customs data released Friday showed that the exports advanced 1 percent in July compared to the same month last year, and down from 11.3 percent in June. Imports rose 4.7 percent in July compared to the same month last year, down from 6.3 percent in June.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.32 percent, the S&P 500 Index was up 0.22 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.07 percent.

Major European indices were in the red as investors were concerned about the economic condition of Japan following the disappointing GDP data for the second quarter. London's FTSE 100 was down 11.94 points, Germany's DAX 30 index fell 7.19 points and France's CAC 40 dropped 6.76 points.

Asian stocks were also down as market participants were worried to find that the persisting debt crisis in the eurozone and the weak domestic spending are hurting the Japanese economy.