NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - Stocks are set for a lower open Monday, as corporate accounting worries could once again retake the spotlight amid a dearth of fresh economic reports.
June S&P futures were 0.40 lower to 1,166.20, which is about 1-point below fair value, according to figures provided by HL Camp & Company.
Corporate news is expected to drive the market, with little economic data to turn to on Monday. Qwest (TICKER: Q ) said that the SEC has launched an informal inquiry into the telecom company. It will hold an 8 a.m. EST conference call.
Nasdaq 100 futures are down 4.00, or about 4 3/4-points below fair value, at 1,560.00.
The S&P 500 cash index ( $SPX : news , chart , profile ) closed Friday up 6.77 at 1,164.31, and was up 32.53 points for the week. The Nasdaq 100 Index ( $NDX : news , chart , profile ) added 48.30 to close Friday at 1,555.11, and was 119.7 points for the week.
Last week, the Dow industrials saw a fourth straight week of gains and the Nasdaq its most meaningful weekly advance since early October.
On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ( $INDU : news , chart , profile ) added 47.12 points, or 0.4 percent, to 10,572.49. The Nasdaq Composite ( $COMPQ : news , chart , profile ) rallied 48.04 points, or 2.6 percent, to 1,929.67 and the Nasdaq 100 Index ( $NDX : news , chart , profile ) tacked on 48.30 points, or 3.2 percent, to 1,555.11.
The top indexes closed out the week with hefty gains: the Dow was up 2 percent, the Nasdaq 7 percent and the S&P 500 2.9 percent. The Dow hovered at a 7 1/2-month peak while the Nasdaq was at a five-week high.
Peter Cardillo, chief investment strategist with Global Partners Securities, believes the stock rally will remain on firm footing over the short term but conceded it could run into roadblocks when the pre-announcement season begins.
"Stocks continue to build on momentum and the Dow has been pushed to the high end of its trading range. Investors don't want to miss out on the recovery," Cardillo said.
He said corporate profit growth is still the missing piece of the puzzle but believes capital spending could increase sooner than many anticipate thanks to the aggressive cost-cutting measures implemented by companies over the past year.
This week's calendar will be chock-full of interesting releases that'll give investors a better picture of how the economy performed last month.
The retail sales report for February tops the list, followed by the industrial production/capacity utilization figures and the February producer price index.
Other notable indicators include the Michigan consumer sentiment index for March, January business inventories, and the import and export price indexes for February.
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