Stock futures point to lower Wall Street opening

NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market headed toward a modestly lower start Wednesday as investors wait for aluminum maker Alcoa Inc. to give some guidance about the economy.

U.S. stock futures fell slightly while markets around the world were little changed. The falling price of oil, which stock investors are interpreting as a sign of economic weakness, has contributed to selling on world exchanges over the past week.

The decline in futures means Wall Street might extend Tuesday's sharp drop, but there's likely to be little conviction in the selling. Investors want to see what Alcoa has to say about the economy in its earnings report, which comes out after the market's close.

Wall Street analysts expect Alcoa to post a second-quarter loss of 38 cents per share. In the same period a year earlier, Alcoa earned 66 cents per share on revenue of $7.6 billion.

Dow Jones industrial average futures are down 16, or 0.2 percent, at 8,115, while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index futures are down 1.80, or 0.2 percent, at 887.50. Nasdaq 100 index futures are down 1.25, or 0.1 percent, at 1,406.75.

Investor confidence has waned after poor U.S. and European jobs data and plunging commodities prices.

Oil prices have declined to below $62 a barrel from $73 last week as investors believed that demand for energy would fall because of the weak economy. A barrel of crude traded at $61.84, down $1.09, in electronic trading ahead of the opening on the New York Mercantile Exchange.