U.S. Index Futures Are Little Changed Before Retail Data

By Namitha Jagadeesh  

U.S. stock-index futures were little changed, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index heading for its first weekly drop in six, as investors awaited reports on retail sales and consumer confidence.
GoPro Inc. declined 0.9 percent in early New York trading after a person familiar with the matter said HTC Corp. is developing a competing camera. Conversant Inc. surged 29 percent in Germany after Alliance Data Systems Corp. agreed to buy it. Hertz Global Holdings Inc. climbed 7.1 percent after reaching an agreement with Carl Icahn to replace three directors.
Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in December retreated less than 0.1 percent to 1,988.4 at 10:06 a.m. in London. The S&P 500 has declined 0.5 percent this week on concern the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates sooner than forecast. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts lost 8 points, less than 0.1 percent, to 16,952, today.
“The paradox is that if the data is bad,
the market will appreciate it as a sign that the Fed may put off raising interest rates for longer,” said Jacques Porta, who helps oversee $780 million at Ofi Gestion Privee in Paris. “If the data is good, we may see some nervousness. The Fed will determine the rise or drop of markets. It’s difficult to continue the rally, and we’ll need very, very good news to buy the market.”
A report at 8:30 a.m. in Washington may show U.S. retail sales rose 0.6 percent in August, after growth stagnated in July, according to the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. A separate release may show the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary sentiment index climbed to 83.3 this month, from 82.5 in August, according to economists’ projections.
The Fed is assessing the strength of the economy as it winds down a bond-buying program and considers raising rates. The central bank, which meets Sept. 16-17, has said that its benchmark rate will stay low for a “considerable time” after it completes the monthly bond purchases.

Waterproof Camera

GoPro, a maker of cameras used in action sports, slipped 0.9 percent to $67.65. HTC is developing a waterproof camera for extreme sports, according to a person familiar with the plans.
Conversant, which helps companies target users with Internet advertisements based on their previous online searches, soared 29 percent to $34.44. Alliance Data agreed to buy the company for $2.3 billion, or $35 a share, according to a statement.
Hertz rallied 7.1 percent to $29.72 in German trading after the rental-car company agreed to replace three directors on its boards with Icahn associates. In return, the billionaire investor agreed not to seek board representation and to vote in favor of company nominees for election at Hertz’s 2015 annual meeting.