US stock futures fall with Intel, Ford in focus

Intel stock slipped 1.3 percent to $19.74 in electronic trading after the chip maker confirmed it will cut a total of 10,500 workers, or 10 percent of its work force, by the middle of next year. The cuts came at the low end of the 9,000 to 15,000 jobs analysts expected would be shed.

Shares of Ford rose 4 percent in European trading after the automaker named former Boeing Co. executive Alan Mulally president and chief executive officer on Tuesday.

Citigroup Inc. upgraded Ford’s stock, saying Mulally’s turnaround experience with Boeing adds credibility to Ford’s restructuring, according to MarketWatch.

“The Ford news will dominate the opening, and the story right behind it is Intel,” said Rick Meckler, president of LibertyView Capital Management in Jersey City, New Jersey.

S&P 500 futures were down 4.10 points, below fair value, a mathematical formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract.

Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 29 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 5.25 points.

Hewlett-Packard Co. may be active after it said George Keyworth should not be nominated for another term on the board after an internal investigation found he disclosed board deliberations without authorization.

Nokia shares slid to three-week lows in European trading as speculation persisted the world’s biggest handset maker may lower its earnings forecasts.

Sony Corp. said it would delay the European launch of its PlayStation 3 game machine due to inadequate supply of a key component. This is the second time Sony has delayed the sale of its PlayStation console, which competes with Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co.

Data on US wage inflation and productivity are due from the Labor Department at 8:30 a.m. (1230 GMT). Economists on average expect productivity to rise 1.5 percent in the second quarter and unit labor costs to be up 3.8 percent, according to a Reuters poll.

Also on the calendar are a report on the services sector for last month and the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book, an anecdotal survey of the economy.

Quarterly earnings from home builder Hovnanian Enterprises make up the only significant results expected on Wednesday.