7:30 a.m.: US stocks open moderately lower

The Associated Press

March 26, 2008 07:28 am

— NEW YORK — Stocks headed for a moderately lower open Wednesday as investors waited to see if the government’s durable goods report would justify continuing the market’s recent rally.
Stocks largely extended their gains Tuesday after a big two-day rally. The market’s ability to add to its advance has been greeted by bullish investors as a sign that the market’s troubles are on the mend; Wall Street didn’t succumb to its recent pattern of selling off after such a strong move upward. The Dow Jones industrial average has risen more than 425 points in the past three sessions.
Government figures are due before the opening bell on durable goods orders for February and, later, on new home sales. The readings could help determine whether the run-up continues.
Corporate news appeared to weigh on some investors Wednesday. Private equity firms leading a $19.5 billion buyout of Clear Channel Communications Inc. were having difficulty reaching terms with the banks committed to financing the deal and the plan was close to collapse, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 12, or 0.10 percent, to 12,503. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 2.90, or 0.21 percent, to 1,348.40, while Nasdaq 100 index futures fell 2.00, or 0.11 percent, to 1,824.00.
Bond prices rose. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, fell to 3.49 percent from 3.51 percent late Tuesday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose.
Light, sweet crude rose $1.16 to $102.38 in premarket electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 0.30 percent. In morning trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.45 percent, Germany’s DAX index fell 0.26 percent, and France’s CAC-40 was off 0.07 percent.