Stocks were poised to fall Wednesday as the Senate prepared to vote on a tweaked version of the $700 billion bailout bill.
S&P futures vs fair value: -10.90. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -13.80. Nasdaq futures fall to session lows.
The Senate version of the bill includes new provisions, such as raising the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. cap protecting deposits to $250,000 from $100,000. The provisions will be added to an existing revenue bill that the House also rejected Monday, according to Democratic leadership aides.
As another sign of the economic crisis, the Mortgage Bankers Association's report showed a 23% plunge in mortgage applications in the week ended Sept. 26.
Automatic Data Processing, Inc. released its monthly employment report, showing a decline of 8,000 jobs in September, from the prior month. In August, the economy lost 37,000 jobs, ADP said.
At 1400GMT, the Commerce Department will release its August measurement of construction spending. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com project a decline of 0.4%, compared to a steeper decline of 0.6% the prior month.
Also at 1400GMT, the Institute for Supply Management - a purchasing managers' group - will release its September index of manufacturing activity. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com project a reading of 50.1, just above the 50 mark that denotes economic expansion and the 49.9 reading in August.
Crude oil prices are down 1.3% to $99.33 per barrel ahead of the government's weekly energy inventory report at 1435GMT. Gold is down 0.5% and the dollar is nearly flat.
The Nikkei closed higher, while European markets were mixed. The dollar edged up versus the euro, the British pound and the yen. Oil prices hovered around $100 a barrel, dipping $1.09 to $99.55 a barrel.