Stock futures flat as investors await more clues from Fed

[August 30, 2016]  By Yashaswini Swamynathan

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Tuesday as investors waited for more clues on the timing of the next interest rate hike.

* Investors are trying to decipher whether an interest rate hike in the United States could come as early as next month after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said on Friday that the case for a raise was strengthening.

* Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer, in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Tuesday, said the U.S. job market is close to full strength and the pace of interest rate hikes will depend on how well the economy is doing, but he gave little clues on the timing of the next hike.

* Investors are awaiting a report on monthly payrolls data due on Friday, which could support the Fed's earlier plans for two hikes this year or scuttle any move.

* Meanwhile, they will keep an eye on a report that is expected to show the consumer confidence index edged slightly down to 97 in August after hitting 97.3 last month. The data is due at 10:00 a.m. ET (1400 GMT).

* The Case/Shiller house price index, due at 9:00 a.m. ET, is likely to have risen 5.2 percent in the 12 months to June.

* Strong economic data in the past few months and narrowing concern about global economic risks have encouraged the Fed to turn more hawkish on rates. However, the central bank has maintained that any increase would be gradual.

* The dollar index continued to trade at a more than two-week high on higher prospects of a rate increase.

* Traders see a 21 percent chance of an interest rate increase when the Fed meets in September and a 54.2 percent chance in December, according CME Group's FedWatch tool.

* Wall Street closed higher on Monday, helped by a lift in financials and commodity stocks after strong consumer spending data pointed to a pickup in U.S. economic growth.

A Wall Street sign is pictured outside the New York Stock Exchange in New York, October 28, 2013. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo

* Apple fell 1.87 percent to $104.92 in heavy premarket trading after European Union antitrust regulators ordered the iPhone maker to pay $14.5 billion to the Irish government, ruling that a scheme to route profits through Ireland was illegal state aid.

* The stock was the biggest percentage loser among S&P 500 components.

* ScanSourcedropped 13.41 percent to $37.13 after the company reported quarterly revenue that missed analysts' estimates.

Futures snapshot at 7:35 a.m. EDT:

* S&P 500 e-minis were down 1 point, or 0.05 percent, with 109,032 contracts traded.

* Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 10 points, or 0.21 percent, on volume of 16,779 contracts.

* Dow e-minis <1YMc1> were down 3 points, or 0.02 percent, with 15,001 contracts changing hands.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru)

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