Futures dip with oil as investors assess rate hike chances

[September 13, 2016]  By Tanya Agrawal

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were lower on Tuesday as oil prices fell and investors reassessed the possibility of a near-term rise in U.S. interest rates.

* Oil prices were about 2 percent lower after the International Energy Agency said a sharp slowdown in global oil demand growth, means the crude market will be oversupplied at least through the first six months of 2017. [O/R]

* U.S. stocks racked up their strongest gain in two months on Monday after Federal Reserve Board Governor Lael Brainard stuck to her dovish stance on interest rates and urged caution about removing monetary stimulus too quickly. No other Fed official is scheduled to speak before the Sept 20-21 FOMC meet.

* However, any sense of calm in markets looked fragile after three volatile trading days that saw bond yields soar and stocks rack up heavy losses, on concern that monetary policy was reaching its limits as a tool to lift the global economy.

* Futures traders cut the chances of a Fed rate hike at the central bank's Sept 20-21 meeting to just 15 percent from 21 percent, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool.

* Data on Tuesday showed China's factory output and retail sales grew faster than expected in August.

* "The strong data out of China will also give confidence to the Fed that the Chinese economy is strengthening and another rate hike is possible," said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets UK, in London.

* "Traders are concerned that despite Brainard's dovish comments, another rate hike could be very much possible by the end of the year."

* The dollar index  was higher on Tuesday, marking the fifth straight day of gains, while gold prices edged up too.

* Netflix shares dropped 1.7 percent to $97.40 in premarket trading after Macquarie downgraded the stock to "underperform".

* Anadarko Petroleum was down 5.2 percent at $54.77 after it agreed to buy Freeport McMoRan's Gulf of Mexico assets. Freeport was down 1.2 percent at $10.95.

* Intersil  jumped 8.3 percent to $21.40 after Renesas Electronics agreed to buy the chipmaker.

Futures snapshot at 7:11 a.m. ET (1111 GMT):

* Dow e-minis <1YMc1> were down 94 points, or 0.51 percent, with 8,733 contracts changing hands.

* S&P 500 e-minis <ESc1> were down 12 points, or 0.56 percent, with 180,820 contracts traded.

* Nasdaq 100 e-minis <NQc1> were down 26.5 points, or 0.56 percent, on volume of 9,231 contracts.

(Reporting by Tanya Agrawal; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

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