By Steve Goldstein, MarketWatch LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures pointed to a downbeat start Thursday, as pessimism surrounding the world economy weighed on markets. S&P 500 futures fell 6 points to 1,102.50 and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 7.75 points to 1,792.70. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 41 points. Technology shares led a decline in markets on Wednesday, as the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 10 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 11 points and the S&P 500 retreated a fraction of a point. Concern over the results from Salesforce.com and Autodesk weighed on the sector. Techs could be in for fresh pressure, as Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded eight microchip companies, notably Intel (INTC 20.12, -0.20, -0.98%) and Texas Instruments (TXN 25.75, -0.12, -0.46%) , on worries that inventories are too high unless there's a sharp upturn from global economies. In Frankfurt, Intel and TI shares both fell 1%. A British newspaper, The Daily Telegraph, ran a story highlighting a recent note from Societe Generale, which offered advice on how to handle "an extreme worst-case scenario," which suggested selling the dollar, buying government bonds and defensive companies like telecoms and utilities, selling European stocks and buying agricultural commodities in that instance. "Further transfer of debt from the private sector to the state and rising healthcare costs, particularly for ageing baby boomers, are among the factors behind soaring U.S. public debt. These poor demographics and the complexity of the current crisis serve as reminders that we may not have escaped the prospects of a 'lost decade,' implying years of sub-par economic growth ahead," said the research note. President Obama warned during his trip in China that too much government debt could lead to a double-dip recession. There are a number of economic releases on Thursday, including weekly jobless claims, leading indicators for October and the November Philadelphia Fed survey. The jobless claims data is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern and the leading indicators and Philly Fed data is due at 10. Economists polled by MarketWatch expect claims of 500,000, a 0.4% advance in leading indicators and an improvement in the Philly Fed index to 14.0 from 11.5. Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, isn't as bullish on the Philly Fed reading, saying he's skeptical that industrial activity can accelerate much more. Ahead of the data, the dollar rose against most currencies, while gold futures fell $4.70 an ounce and oil futures also lost ground. On the corporate side, Sears Holdings (SHLD 75.77, -0.55, -0.72%) reported a $127 million quarterly loss, with The Gap (GPS 22.30, -0.01, -0.04%) and Dell (DELL 16.06, +0.11, +0.69%) reporting after the close of trade. Hot Topic (HOTT 6.67, -0.09, -1.33%) may drop as the teen retailer issued a weaker-than-anticipated fourth-quarter earnings estimate. Limited Brands (LTD 18.27, +0.24, +1.33%) may gain as the Victoria' Secret parent company increased its third-quarter profit and lifted its annual outlook. A weaker sales forecast from Danone and losses by miners sent the pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 down 0.4% in mid-morning trade. Declines also were seen in many Asia markets, with the Hang Seng retreating 0.9% and the Nikkei 225 also ending lower.

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