U.S. stock index futures pointed to a weaker start after the markets closed at 18-month highs.
The latest weekly jobless claims number came in higher than expected. There were 484,000 initial claims for unemployment benefits last week, 24,000 more than the previous week. Economists were expecting a slight decline.
At 9:15 am, the Federal Reserve will release March numbers for industrial production and factory capacity utilization. Industrial production is seen increasing by 0.8% after February's rise of 0.1%, and capacity utilization should increase to 73.3% from the prior month's reading of 72.7%. At 10:00 am, the Philadelphia Fed Index will be out, with consensus forecasts expecting a rise in April to 19.5 from March's 18.9. And at 1:00 pm, the National Association of Home Builders sentiment index will be released. It is forecast to rise slightly from last month.
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