Stock index futures fall; economy in focus

09/03/2009 - 9:51

(Reuters) - Dow Jones futures fell 2.2 percent by 0920 GMT (5:20 a.m. EDT) and S&P 500 futures were down 2.4 percent while Nasdaq futures were 2.0 percent lower, signaling that Wall Street would decline on Monday.

No S&P 500 companies were scheduled to report and no economic indicators of note were due for release.

National Economic Council Director Larry Summers, the White House's chief economic adviser, told the Financial Times that kickstarting economic growth should take precedence over ironing out global imbalances.

President Barack Obama promised on Saturday to do everything necessary to boost the U.S. economy out of recession but also said he could not assure Americans the economy would start growing again later this year.

American International Group had warned of turmoil around the globe if the government allowed the insurer to fail when it appealed to U.S. regulators for its latest rescue, Bloomberg said citing an AIG presentation dated February 26.

Britain's Sunday Times said UK insurer Prudential has pulled out of the auction for the Asian business of troubled AIG.

Ford Motor aims to outperform overall growth this year in China's car market, which it expects to expand 10 percent in 2009 if there is a rise of 5 to 10 percent in March, a senior executive said on Monday.

GE Capital, the finance arm of U.S. conglomerate General Electric , plans to sell more bonds under a government guarantee program, a source involved in the deal said.

An apparent attempt to foment anti-American sentiment by prominent Chinese casino operator Stanley Ho could hurt Las Vegas Sands Corp's operations in Macau, its Chief Executive Sheldon Adelson told the Wall Street Journal in an interview.

(Reporting by Peter Starck)