Individual stock news likely to take forefront after market hits 17-month high in previous session.
U.S. stock markets headed for a cautious start Tuesday after reaching 17-month highs in the prior session on signs of economic strength.
Just before 7:25 a.m. ET, S&P and Nasdaq futures indicated a flat to lower start for stocks.
Stocks surged to their highest levels in months Monday, starting November with a bang, inspired by bullish news on the economy and the technology sector. (For Monday's market wrapup, click on the chart).
With a lack of any major economic reports set for Tuesday, investors eagerly awaited earnings reports from Gillette (G: Research, Estimates), Priceline.com (PCLN: Research, Estimates) and Prudential (PRU: Research, Estimates), among other companies.
Tyco International (TYC: Research, Estimates) posted a fiscal fourth-quarter loss of 15 cents a share, compared with a loss of 72 cents a share in the year-ago period. Tyco also said it's cutting 7,200 jobs and closing 219 manufacturing and other sites.
Some heavyweights could also see action Tuesday.
The Federal Trade Commission said on its Web site Monday that it granted approval to billionaire New York investor Carl Icahn to purchase a large stake in Eastman Kodak (EK: Research, Estimates). The FTC reviews transactions of more than $50 million because of antitrust concerns.
Automaker General Motors (GM: Research, Estimates), also a Dow component, said it plans to increase output capacity at its Chinese plants by 50 percent by 2006. It also plans to begin assembling Cadillacs in the country's commercial hub next year.
Overseas, stocks rallied in Tokyo, pushing the rest of Asia higher while European stocks traded mixed at midday.
Treasury prices were little changed, with the yield on the 10-year note holding at 4.34 percent from late Monday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
In currency markets, the dollar edged lower against the Japanese yen and was little changed against the euro.
Brent crude oil slipped 16 cents to $26.95 a barrel in London, where gold edged higher.
Other stocks to watch include Cephalon (CEPH: Research, Estimates), which fell about 2 percent in after-hours trading Monday after the drug maker agreed to buy Cima Labs (CIMA: Research, Estimates) for about $515 million.
Cima shares jumped 6 percent from their close at the end of regular trading.
Wednesday will bring a report on factory orders for September and Alan Greenspan's testimony before a Senate banking panel.
But investors have already begun looking ahead to the big number of the week -- the October jobs report -- due Friday.
U.S. stock markets headed for a cautious start Tuesday after reaching 17-month highs in the prior session on signs of economic strength.
Just before 7:25 a.m. ET, S&P and Nasdaq futures indicated a flat to lower start for stocks.
Stocks surged to their highest levels in months Monday, starting November with a bang, inspired by bullish news on the economy and the technology sector. (For Monday's market wrapup, click on the chart).
With a lack of any major economic reports set for Tuesday, investors eagerly awaited earnings reports from Gillette (G: Research, Estimates), Priceline.com (PCLN: Research, Estimates) and Prudential (PRU: Research, Estimates), among other companies.
Tyco International (TYC: Research, Estimates) posted a fiscal fourth-quarter loss of 15 cents a share, compared with a loss of 72 cents a share in the year-ago period. Tyco also said it's cutting 7,200 jobs and closing 219 manufacturing and other sites.
Some heavyweights could also see action Tuesday.
The Federal Trade Commission said on its Web site Monday that it granted approval to billionaire New York investor Carl Icahn to purchase a large stake in Eastman Kodak (EK: Research, Estimates). The FTC reviews transactions of more than $50 million because of antitrust concerns.
Automaker General Motors (GM: Research, Estimates), also a Dow component, said it plans to increase output capacity at its Chinese plants by 50 percent by 2006. It also plans to begin assembling Cadillacs in the country's commercial hub next year.
Overseas, stocks rallied in Tokyo, pushing the rest of Asia higher while European stocks traded mixed at midday.
Treasury prices were little changed, with the yield on the 10-year note holding at 4.34 percent from late Monday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.
In currency markets, the dollar edged lower against the Japanese yen and was little changed against the euro.
Brent crude oil slipped 16 cents to $26.95 a barrel in London, where gold edged higher.
Other stocks to watch include Cephalon (CEPH: Research, Estimates), which fell about 2 percent in after-hours trading Monday after the drug maker agreed to buy Cima Labs (CIMA: Research, Estimates) for about $515 million.
Cima shares jumped 6 percent from their close at the end of regular trading.
Wednesday will bring a report on factory orders for September and Alan Greenspan's testimony before a Senate banking panel.
But investors have already begun looking ahead to the big number of the week -- the October jobs report -- due Friday.
3287.99
1275.09
