Futures dip before data-packed week; Powell's comments in focus
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CVS gains after report Glenview to meet with executives
Ford, GM slide after peer Stellantis trims annual forecast
Futures off: Dow 0.15%, S&P 500 0.22%, Nasdaq 0.31%
Updated at 7:29 a.m. ET/1129 GMT
By Johann M Cherian and Purvi Agarwal
Sept 30 (Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures slipped onMonday as investors were cautiousahead of a week filled with numerous jobs reports and comments from policymakers including Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were down 63 points, or 0.15%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were down 12.75 points, or 0.22% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were down 62.75 points, or 0.31%.
Futures tracking the small caps Russell 2000 index RTYc1 slipped 0.64%.
The blue-chip Dow .DJI closed at a record high on Friday, and the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX is a whisker away from an all-time high. Both indexes are set for their fifth straight month of gains, defying a historical trend where September has been a weak month for equities on average.
The world's most influential central bank kicked off its policy easing nearly two weeks ago, fuelling a rally that has propped Wall Street's three main indexes for quarterly gains as well.
Data recently has supported the trend ofmoderating price pressures, while the underlying economy fares well overall, granting the Fed enoughroom to support the labor market and avoid a recession by reducing borrowing costs further.
Economists say that a mistake in setting interest rates during the last phase of the Fed's inflationbattle could be risky for the economy over the next year as markets await comments from chair Powell at a conference on Monday at 1:55 p.m. ET.
Comments from Governor Michelle Bowman will also be parsed before markets open. A report showed St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem said the central bank should cut interest rates "gradually".
Investors will also keep a close tab on August's job openings report and September's pivotal payrolls figure, along with final business activity estimates lined up through the week for clues on the outlook for the economy and rate cuts.
Traders have been divided over the Fed's move at its November meeting, with bets for quarter of a percentage point reduction now at 60.9%, as per the CME Group's FedWatch Tool. Those for a bigger 50 basis points cut stand at 39.1%, down from 53% last week.
"Unemployment close to matching the Fed’s year-end forecast would solidify the (50 bps cut) pricing. The bigger risk for market pricing shifting back towards 25 bp cuts could be with an unexpectedly strong reading," Citigroup analysts said in a note.
Among top premarket movers, CVS Health CVS.N rose 2.6% after a report showed hedge fund Glenview Capital Management will meet top executives at the struggling healthcare company to propose ways it can improve operations.
Automakers Ford F.N and General Motors GM.N lost over 3% each after European peer Stellantis NV STLAM.MI slashed its annual forecasts.
Lithium miners such as Albemarle ALB.N rose 1.5%, Arcadium ALTM.N added 1.4%, while U.S.-listed shares of copper miners BHP BHP.N and Rio Tinto RIO.N rose 0.6% each after top metals consumer China's central bank, in its latest stimulus move, said it would tell banks to lower mortgage rates for existing home loans.
U.S.-listed shares of Alibaba BABA.K rose 3.9%, Li Auto jumped 6.9% LI.O and PDD PDD.O climbed 4.3% tracking domestic stocks that saw their biggest single-day rally since 2008.
Crypto stocks such as Microstrategy MSTR.O lost 5.3%, Coinbase COIN.O dropped 3.4%, Bit Digital BTBT.O fell 4.1% tracking a slide in bitcoin BTC= prices.
Reporting by Johann M Cherian and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel
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