NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were little changed on Wednesday before data that could show whether the economy was headed into a recession and a Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.þþIn company news, Citigroup Inc fell 3.5 percent before the bell after the bank's surprise plan to raise $3 billion to bolster its balance sheet by selling stock, thereby diluting current shareholders' investment.þþBut tempering the worries was a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss reported by General Motors Corp .þþThe U.S. central bank is widely expected to lower its target benchmark rate by a quarter-percentage point to 2 percent. Investors will focus on the Fed's statement on the economic outlook and look for clues on whether its cycle of rate cuts may be coming to an end.þþThe government's initial reading on first-quarter gross domestic product, the broadest measure of total economic activity within U.S. borders, is due at 8:30 a.m. (1230 GMT).þþÿFutures have improved a little bit on the General Motors earnings report, so they are off their low levels. But where they are now has nothing to do with where they will be at 8:30 a.m.,ÿ said Paul Mendelsohn, chief investment strategist at Windham Financial Services in Charlotte, Vermont.þþÿIf GDP comes in .... positive or better that will be positive for the market because that will lead investors to believe that things aren't as bad as the consumer or rest of the people think it is. If it's negative or much lower than expected, that's going to support the theory that, yes, we are going into recession if we're not in one.ÿþþAs of Tuesday's close, the benchmark S&P 500 <.SPX> was on track for its best monthly advance in 4 1/2 years.þþS&P 500 futures slipped 1.3 points, and were about even with fair value, a formula to evaluate pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures inched up 3 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures shed 1.25 points.þþGDP is expected to have grown at a slim 0.2 percent annual rate in the first three months of the year, down from 0.6 percent growth in the fourth quarter, according to the median forecast of 89 economists polled by Reuters.þþThe GDP report is scheduled shortly after the release of April's ADP National Employment Report, which some economists use to predict the government's monthly payroll figures. The Labor Department's report on April non-farm payrolls is set for Friday.þþThe Fed's interest rate decision is expected at 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT).þþCitigroup shares fell to $25.40 before the bell, but GM climbed 5.1 percent to $22.28.þþU.S. stocks ended little changed on Tuesday.þþ(Editing by Kenneth Barry)þþ
Source: NY Times
