After November gains, stocks expected to slip as oil prices extend decline

Investors focusing on retail sales numbers after Black Friday and signs that China's manufacturing slowed
NOV 30, 2014
U.S. stock-index futures declined, indicating equities will fall for a second day, as oil prices extended losses, and data showed Chinese manufacturing slowed last month. Schlumberger (SLB) Ltd. slipped 2.6% in early New York trading as West Texas Intermediate tumbled. American Airlines (AAL) Group Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co. gained amid optimism that travel-related companies will benefit from lower fuel costs. Contracts on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) fell 0.5% to 2,056 at 10:30 a.m. in London. The equity index climbed 2.5% in November, advancing for a second month, as global central banks added stimulus and plunging oil prices triggered gains in consumer companies that overshadowed a slump in energy shares. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts dropped 75 points, or 0.4%, to 17,737, Monday. A report at 10 a.m. New York time from the Institute for Supply Management will show its factory index declined to 58 in November from 59 the previous month, according to the median analyst forecast. China's official factory index fell to 50.3 for November, below the 50.5 reading projected by economists, while a private gauge from HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics came in at 50, the border between expansion and contraction. Retail stocks may move after a report from the National Retail Federation showed U.S. consumers spent an estimated 11% less than last year over the post-Thanksgiving weekend. It's the second year in a row that sales declined during a period famous for long lines and frenzied crowds. Schlumberger, the world's biggest provider of oilfield services, retreated 2.6% to $83.30 in early New York trading. Exxon Mobil Corp. lost 1.3% to $89.39. WTI tumbled below $65 a barrel to the lowest level since July 2009, amid speculation oil prices have further to drop. Among other U.S. energy-related stocks, Oasis Petroleum Inc. retreated 12% to $16.25, and EOG Resources Inc. fell 2% to $85. Kellogg Co. slid 0.8% to $65.69 in Germany after outbidding Abraaj Group Ltd. for a stake in Egyptian confectionery maker Bisco Misr. American Airlines, the world's largest carrier, climbed 0.7% to $48.89, and Southwest Airlines rose 2.7% to $42.96 in German trading.

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