Stocks - U.S. Futures Flat to Lower as Trade, Economic Worries Weigh

Investing.com - U.S. futures pointed to a flat to lower open on Monday amid trade concerns and worries over a global economic slowdown .

The S&P 500 futures dipped 3 points or 0.12% to 2,602.38 as of 6:40 AM ET (11:40 GMT) while Dow futures ticked down 33 points, or 0.14%, to 24,095. Meanwhile tech heavy Nasdaq 100 futures decreased 6 points, or 0.09%, to 6,616.25.

All three indexes closed on Friday in correction territory for the first time since March 2016.

Trade tensions between the U.S. and China weighed on markets after U.S. trade ambassador Dennis Shea said that China’s “unfair competitive practices” was harming foreign companies and in violation of World Trade Organization rules.

Washington and Beijing agreed to a 90-day truce earlier in December as the two countries work out trade negotiations.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (NYSE:FCAU) was among the top gainers in premarket trading, rising 1.4%, while Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) inched up 0.3% and Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG) increased 1.1%. Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) jumped 2.3% after Nelson Roberts Investment Advisors increased their stake in the company by 7.21%.

Elsewhere, Best Buy (NYSE:BBY) slumped 4.2%, while Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) fell 1% and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) dipped 0.5% after Malaysia filed charges against the company over the 1MBD scandal.

In economic news, the New York Empire State Manufacturing index for December is released at 8:30 AM ET (13:30 GMT).

In commodities, gold futures rose 0.1% to $1,243.40 a troy ounce while crude oil futures increased 0.8% to $51.90 a barrel.

The U.S. dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, fell 0.2% to 96.69.

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