Futures lower on global growth worry, JPMorgan results

[January 14, 2015]  By Chuck Mikolajczak

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures fell on Wednesday, putting equities on track to extend their three-day losing streak, as global demand worries continue to put pressure on commodities such as oil and copper.

* Copper prices touched their lowest level since July 2009 and were last down 5.1 percent at $5,353.25 a tonne after the World Bank cut its global forecast for economic growth in 2015 and next year. Shares of Freeport McMoRan lost 4.4 percent to $20.11 before the opening bell.

* Brent crude fell to a low of $45.59 before bouncing back to trade up 0.2 percent to $46.66, while U.S. crude was down 0.2 percent at $$45.82 after falling as low as $45.01. The Energy Information Administration's oil inventory report is due at 10:30 a.m. (1530 GMT). [O/R]

* Adding to pressure were shares of JPMorgan, which fell 1.3 percent to $58.10 after the biggest U.S. bank by assets reported a 6.6 percent drop in quarterly profit. Earnings from Wells Fargo are also expected on Wednesday.

* Fourth-quarter earnings are expected to show growth of 3.7 percent from a year earlier, according to Thomson Reuters data, down from the 11.2 percent growth expected on Oct. 1.

* U.S. stocks ended lower on Tuesday in a volatile session, weighed by the energy and materials sectors to give the benchmark S&P index its third straight decline and eighth drop in 10 sessions. The S&P is down 3.2 percent from its last record high on Dec. 29.

* Economic data expected on Wednesday includes December retail sales and import prices at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT), with business inventories scheduled for 10 a.m.

* Tesla shares dropped 7.7 percent to $188.62 before the opening bell after Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said the company might not be profitable until 2020.

* The drop in oil and copper also weighed on Asian and European shares, although the latter managed to pare losses after an advisor to Europe's top court said an ECB bond-buying program was legal under some conditions. [.EU]

Futures snapshot at 7:18:

* S&P 500 e-minis were down 7 points, or 0.35 percent, with 238,475 contracts changing hands.

* Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 10.75 points, or 0.26 percent, in volume of 49,630 contracts.

* Dow e-minis were down 69 points, or 0.39 percent, with 47,402 contracts changing hands.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak)

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.