GM all, Wall St seen opening weaker after four-day rally
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Futures pointed to a weaker opening on Monday, with investors expected to lock in profits after a four-day rally and with little on the corporate agenda.
At 5:34 a.m. EDT, the Dow Jones future was down 0.3 percent, the S&P future was down 0.2 percent, and the Nasdaq future was down 0.1 percent.
"Last week's rise was too fast," said Lutz Roehmeyer, fund manager at LBB Invest, adding that he expected a weaker start to December and calmer trading towards the end of the month.
Speculation of a possible interest rate cut in the United States and optimism over a proposed rescue for struggling homeowners fuelled gains on Wall Street last week.
The U.S. Treasury Department and mortgage industry leaders are putting the final touches to a plan that could save struggling homeowners from foreclosure by freezing interest rates before they reset sharply higher.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is expected to announce details of the plan as soon as Wednesday, sources familiar with the matter have told Reuters.
The news lifted financial stocks, in particular, on Friday and the Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.45 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 0.78 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.27 percent.
For the week, the Dow climbed 3 percent, the S&P 500 gained 2.8 percent and the Nasdaq gained 2.5 percent.
But even with the weekly advance, both the Dow and the S&P 500, marked their worst monthly drop in five years.
Roehmeyer said he did not expect further reaction to the rescue plan as Wall Street seemed to have digested the news on Friday.
"Also, I don't really think it is positive that the government decides to step in and freeze interest rates," Roehmeyer said, adding that he thought the reaction of U.S. banks to the news had been exaggerated.
The main feature on Monday's economic agenda is the November reading of the ISM manufacturing index at 1500 GMT.
Also, U.S. Treasury Secretary Paulson is due to speak before the Office of Thrift Supervision's National Housing Forum at 1530 GMT.
The day's corporate agenda includes an earnings update from U.S. apparel manufacturer Phillips-Van Heusen (PVH.N: Quote, Profile , Research).
Investors are also gearing up for key economic data later in the week, which includes non-farm payrolls figures for November on Friday and the preliminary December reading of the Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey.
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