U.S. stock futures traded marginally lower on Friday, as investors took to the sidelines ahead of the two-day Group of 20 meeting in Paris, the long holiday weekend and more unrest in the Middle East.
Futures also dipped after China's central bank raised its reserve-requirement ratio for banks by another 0.5 percentage point. China has a tendency to announce policy measures ahead of weekends and public holidays, which tends to make investors nervous.
About three hours before the start of trade, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were down 12 points at 12276, while those for the Standard & Poor's 500 index were 2.3 points lower at 1,335.5 and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 2.5 points to 2391.
"As we have seen so often in recent sessions, this weakness still looks to be a buying opportunity for most—yesterday saw fresh recovery highs set again by the [Dow] index," said Ben Critchley, sales trader at IG Index. "With nothing major on the economic calendar today, we may see a quiet finish to another positive week."
U.S. stocks added to multiyear highs on Thursday in the wake of economic data and corporate results. The Dow closed up 29.27 points, or 0.24%, at 12318.14, the highest close since June 2008. The S&P 500 index marked its highest close since June 2008 as well.
Markets will be watching for comments from the G-20 meeting of finance ministers and central bankers that begins Friday in Paris, with officials expected to try to address economic imbalances between nations.
In connection with the event, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is due to speak at a panel discussion on global imbalances and financial stability in Paris at 8 a.m. ET.
At 9:45 a.m., U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will participate in a discussion on the state of the global recovery.
Markets were also cautious ahead of a long weekend. U.S. markets will be closed on Monday for the Presidents Day holiday.
And increasing unrest in the Middle East was also making a few wary, with more violence likely in Bahrain's capital on Friday as protesters hold funerals for several people killed in a crackdown on antigovernment demonstrations on Thursday.
There are no major economic data due Friday, but there are a handful of companies due to report ahead of the market's open, including Campbell Soup Co., Progress Energy Inc. and Pinnacle West Capital.
Shares of Brocade Communications Systems Inc. could be in focus after the company late Thursday reported adjusted first-quarter net profit that beat Wall Street forecasts.
European stocks were lower on Friday, after a five-session winning streak, with losses for miners and car makers weighing on the main bourses.
In Asia, stocks fell in Shanghai for the first time in seven sessions amid investor nervousness about potential tightening measures in China.
Among major commodities, crude-oil futures for March delivery fell 61 cents to $85.75 a barrel, while gold futures for April delivery were little changed at $1,385.40 an ounce.
