By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures were mixed but close to the flatline Friday, in muted moves compared with the previous session's sell-off in reaction to a deadly Malaysia Airlines jet crash in Ukraine.

The end of the week will bring gauges of consumer sentiment and economic activity, as well as quarterly results from General Electric Co., a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4) fell 16 points, or 0.1%, to 16,925, while those for the S&P 500 index (SPU4) rose 1 point to 1,954. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index (NDU4) rose 5 points to 3,881.

Equities on Thursday were rattled by news that 298 passengers were killed in an Malaysia Airlines crash in eastern Ukraine, where fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian troops has been going on for months. The UN Security Council was set to hold an emergency meeting on Friday to discuss the Ukrainian-Russian crisis in the wake of the plane crash.

The S&P 500 (SPX) on Thursday saw its biggest one-day fall since April 10, dropping 23 points, or 1.2%, and the Dow industrials (DJI) slide 161 points, or 0.9%, the biggest drop since May 15.

After trading closed Thursday, U.S. intelligence officials reportedly said the jet was shot down by a surface-to-air missile. Ukraine and some Western officials have blamed pro-Russia separatists for the attack, while Russia's President Vladmir Putin says the fault lies with Ukraine's government. Read: Tensions grow as Putin, Western officials trade blame over jet crash

"Investors are heading for safe havens this morning as they assess the geopolitical ramifications of the downing of a Malaysia Airlines plane," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at stockbroker Interactive Investor, in a Friday note. "The renewed focus on the Ukraine on top of the military escalation in Gaza will fuel uncertainty and increase volatility in the days and weeks ahead."

Israel on Thursday night launched an open-ended ground invasion of Gaza aimed at crushing Hamas militants after 10 days of aerial bombardment.

Overnight in Asia, Japan's Nikkei Average fell 1% as investors sought the perceived safety of the Japanese yen. But the U.S. dollar eventually pared its losses against the yen. European stocks slid on the geopolitical tensions, and Russia's MICEX dropped nearly 2%.

Investors will also get a look at developments in the U.S. economy on Friday. A gauge of consumer sentiment could show an improved outlook, aided by strengthening in the labor market. The gauge from the University of Michigan and Thomson Reuters is likely to rise to 83, from a final June level of 82.5. It's set for release at 9:55 a.m. Eastern Time.

Then at 10 a.m. Eastern, the Conference Board will release its June leading-economic index report. Economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires expect a gain, which would signal the economy will continue to expand. The LEI in May rose 0.5%.

Ahead of the opening bell, General Electric (GE) is expected to report earnings of 39 cents a share, up from 36 cents a share a year earlier, according to analysts surveyed by FactSet.

V.F. Corp. (VFC), maker of North Face and Wrangler branded clothing, is likely to report per-share earnings of 35 cents for its second quarter.

In premarket trade, shares of AMD (AMD) tumbled 17% after the chip maker said its second-quarter adjusted earnings were 2 cents a share, below the 3 cents a share projected by analysts in a FactSet survey.

Google (GOOG) shares were up 1.2% premarket, after the Internet company late Thursday posted second-quarter revenue that beat Wall Street's expectations.

IBM (IBM) reported late Thursday second-quarter results that topped expectations.

In the commodities market, gold futures (GCQ4) fell $7.20 to $1,309.90 an ounce. August crude futures (CLQ4) rose 30 cents to $103.49 a barrel.

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