Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a mixed open on Wednesday, as investors awaited fresh earnings reports, while concerns over the outlook for global economic growth weighed on market sentiment.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.22% fall, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.14% loss, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.07% rise.
Sentiment weakened after the World Bank sharply revised on Tuesday its 2013 outlook for the world economy to 2.4% from its last forecast of 3% in June, saying an unexpectedly sluggish recovery in developed countries was to blame for slow global growth.
Meanwhile, uncertainty over the U.S. debt ceiling deadlock continued to weigh after President Barack Obama urged Republicans earlier in the week to approve an increase in the borrowing limit without seeking policy concessions in return.
Financial stocks were set to be in the spotlight, as Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Bank of New York Mellon were due to post fourth-quarter results before the start of the trading session.
Shares in Goldman Sachs were up 0.04% in after-hour trade trade, while JP Morgan added 0.15%.
Aircraft company Boeing was also expected to be active, as Japan's two leading airlines grounded their fleets of 787 Dreamliners on Wednesday after one of the passenger jets made an emergency landing.
The news sent shares in the company down 4.38% pre-market.
In the tech sector, Dell saw shares plummet 2.38% in pre-market trade, following two consecutive sessions of gains due to reports the computer maker is discussing a leveraged buyout with private-equity firms TPG Capital and Silver Lake.
Separately, Apple said it introduced installment payment plans for buyers of iPhones and MacBook laptops in China, in a move to beat competition with low-cost devices. Apple was up 0.80% pre-market.
Elsewhere, General Motors dropped 0.65% in late trading, after the automaker said it expects operating profit to rise "modestly" this year.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included eBay, slates to post results after the closing bell.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.39%, France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.14%, Germany's DAX fell 0.27%, while Britain's FTSE 100 declined 0.46%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slipped 0.1%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dove 2.56%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to produce government data on consumer inflation and a report on industrial production. In addition, the Federal Reserve was to publish its Beige Book.