Stock futures point to lower open on economic concerns

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street equity futures pointed to a lower open on Tuesday as investors fretted about a possible credit downgrade as concerns grew about the economy's growth prospects.

The S&P fell for a sixth straight day on Monday after stocks suffered their worst week in a year last week. A weak reading on the manufacturing sector on Monday added to pessimism over the economy.

The U.S. House of Representatives late Monday passed a last-minute compromise to raise the U.S. debt ceiling and avert a U.S. debt default. The Senate was to vote on the deal at noon EDT.

Still, many investors feared the measure doesn't go far enough to satisfy rating agencies, which have threatened a credit downgrade that could increase Treasury rates and raise borrowing costs.

"A lot of people are very concerned about the potential for a downgrade, and there are also concerns about what the bill means for the overall economy and general concerns about the economy following yesterday's downer of a manufacturing number," said Robert Pavlik, chief market strategist at Banyan Partners LLC in New York. "There are a lot of concerns out there right now."

S&P 500 futures fell 5.5 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures lost 36 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures took off 8 points.

In the latest economic data, U.S. consumer spending fell unexpectedly in June to post the first decline in nearly two years as incomes barely rose, the government reported. Futures barely budged after the data.

Reflecting economic concerns, September U.S. crude futures fell 0.5 percent, while gold, viewed as a safe haven for assets, rose 1 percent and traded within view of a new high.

Overseas debt issues returned to the forefront after French bank BNP Paribas SA took a $768.3 million writedown linked to Greece's debt woes. Europe's FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares fell 1.1 percent.

Pfizer Inc reported a second-quarter profit that beat expectations by a penny and affirmed its full-year profit view. Shares of the Dow component were little changed in premarket trading after falling earlier in the morning.

Agricultural processor Archer Daniels Midland Co took off 2.9 percent to $29.60 after its quarterly earnings came in sharply below expectations.

Mobile service provider MetroPCS Communications Inc's quarterly profit fell short of estimates after it added fewer customers than expected. The stock tumbled 18 percent to $13.25 before the bell.

Overseas, Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> raised its full-year profit outlook, but that was still below expectations.

U.S. stocks fell on Monday, with the S&P down for a sixth straight day, though the market pared losses late in the day.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)