(Updates with Anheuser-Busch rising before the bell, updates
prices)
*Futures flat as oil's rise offsets deal news
*Anheuser-Busch shares gain after report of Belgian bid
*Data on housing and consumer confidence on tap
By Kristina Cooke
NEW YORK, May 27 (Reuters) - Stock index futures were
little changed on Tuesday, pausing after Wall Street's worst
week in three months, as concerns about a further rise in oil
prices offset optimism about a potential bid in the beverage
sector.
There was also caution ahead of economic data on housing
and consumer confidence, due at 10 a.m. (1400 GMT).
Anheuser-Busch Companies Inc <BUD.N> shares rose 1.4
percent before the bell after a newspaper reported Belgian
brewer InBev <INTB.BR> could start takeover talks with the
company. For details, see [
The price of oil hovered around $133 a barrel after an
attack by Nigerian rebels on oil facilities refocused concern
on immediate supply. Higher oil prices have been compounding
concerns about inflation and consumer spending.
Adding to the muted tone, shares of Lehman Brothers
Holdings <LEH.N>, Morgan Stanley <MS.N> and Goldman Sachs Group
Inc <GS.N> slipped before the bell after analysts at Bank of
America and Bernstein cut their profit forecasts for the banks.
[ID:nBNG33275].
U.S. stock markets were closed on Monday for the Memorial
Day holiday.
"There's likely to be carry-over from last week. Inflation
is real and financials still seem to be a mess. It seems last
month was a bear market rally, and the sell-off will continue,"
said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading in
Chatham, New Jersey.
"On the plus side, any time there is a deal, it's positive,
but you need a steady stream of them for real support."
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> were down 0.3 point. Dow Jones
industrial average futures <DJc1> rose 1 point, while Nasdaq
100 <NDc1> futures rose 4.25 points.
In Europe, shares fell as investors turned edgy about
financial worries at banks battered by the credit market
crisis, while in Asia stocks rebounded from the previous day's
dip, as bargain hunters scoured the market after five days of
losses.
Data on U.S. consumer confidence for May as well as new
home sales for April could provide direction.
Economists in a Reuters survey expect a reading of consumer
confidence of 60.0, compared with 62.3 in April, and they
forecast new home sales slipping to 520,000 annualized units
from 526,000 in March.
The market will also keep an eye on the S&P/Case-Shiller
home price index for March. Economists expect a 2.0 percent
fall versus a 2.6 percent decline in February.
U.S. stocks fell on Friday to round out the worst week in
three months as worries about high oil prices hammered
energy-sensitive sectors and left investors on edge about
inflation.
(Editing by Kenneth Barry)
