By Saumya Vaishampayan
U.S. stock futures fell Wednesday, along with European shares,
as lackluster eurozone data raised fresh concerns about growth in
the region.
Some bank shares declined in premarket trade after the
conclusion of a global investigation into foreign-exchange
trading.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures declined 79 points, or
0.5%, to 17489. S&P 500 futures lost nine points, or 0.5%, to
2027 and Nasdaq-100 futures fell 15 points, or 0.4%, to 4169.
Changes in stock futures don't always accurately predict moves in
the stock market after the opening bell.
Five banks-- HSBC Holdings PLC, Royal Bank of Scotland Group
PLC, UBS AG, Citigroup Inc. and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.--
reached a settlement to resolve allegations that they worked
together to try to manipulate the foreign-exchange market to boost
their profits. The banks agreed to pay a total of about $3.3
billion to U.S., British and Swiss regulators.
In premarket trade, J.P. Morgan Chase shares fell 0.7% and
Citigroup shares fell 0.6%.
"The simple fact is that banks remain under pressure," said
Rebecca O'Keeffe, head of investment at Interactive Investor, a
U.K. stockbroker. "Future profits are under threat from the
increased capital regulatory and compliance requirements."
Stocks inched higher Tuesday, pushing the Dow and S&P to
record closes for the fifth session in a row. The Dow added 0.01%
to 17614.90 and the S&P rose 0.1% to 2039.68. Stocks have
recovered from their sharp pullback in mid-September and early
October. For the year, the Dow has hit 24 closing records and the
S&P has closed at 40 highs. But the pace of recent moves has
slowed. The Dow has gained for the last six trading sessions in a
row, notching a total gain of 1.4%. That compares to the 13 times
in October when the Dow moved by 1% or more in either direction in
a single day.
European shares fell Wednesday after data suggested eurozone
economic growth remained weak in the third quarter. Factory output
in September rose 0.6% from August, a slightly smaller increase
than expected. The Stoxx Europe 600 declined 1%.
The Bank of England cut its forecasts for growth and inflation
and signaled an interest-rate increase is unlikely to come until
the second half of 2015. The British pound fell to $1.5818.
BOE Governor Mark Carney "confirmed that interest rates are
going nowhere for a protracted period," said Ms. O'Keeffe of
Interactive Investor.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.326%. The U.S.
bond market was closed on Tuesday for Veterans Day.
In commodity markets, crude-oil futures fell 0.8% to $77.35 a
barrel. Gold futures added 0.1% to $1164.60 an ounce.
In corporate news, Fossil Group Inc. said third-quarter profit
rose 15% as sales increased across segments. Per-share earnings and
revenue in the period beat the company's expectations. Shares
jumped 10% in premarket trade.
Macy's Inc. posted disappointing sales in the third quarter and
cut its earnings and sales view for the year. Per-share earnings
rose to 61 cents in the latest quarter from 47 cents a year ago,
beating analyst expectations. Shares rose 1% premarket.
BB&T Corp. agreed to buy Susquehanna Bancshares Inc. for
about $2.5 billion in cash and stock. The acquisition is one of the
biggest among banks since the financial crisis. Shares of BB&T
fell 2.4% premarket, while shares of Susquehanna surged 32% in
premarket trade.
Write to Saumya Vaishampayan at saumya.vaishampayan@wsj.com