Consumer woes hit Wall Street

LONDON (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stock futures fell Tuesday as signs that consumers may be cutting back fanned recession worries.

Two major retailers warned late Monday about a slowdown in sales. Target cut its forecast for September same-store sales growth, while Lowe's said softer-than-expected sales would pressure its profit for the full year.

Shares of Target (Charts, Fortune 500) fell nearly 4 percent in Frankfurt, while Lowe's (Charts, Fortune 500) stock sank about 7 percent.

The dim outlook raised concerns about the resilience of consumers. A significant pullback in consumer spending, which accounts for two-thirds of the nation's economic activity, could raise the threat of recession.

Investors will get a closer look at the health of the American consumer at 10 a.m. ET, when a report on September consumer confidence is due to be released. Also due out at 10 a.m. ET is a report on August existing home sales.

In major corporate news, Microsoft (Charts, Fortune 500) may be considering buying up to a 5 percent stake in social networking site Facebook for $300 to $500 million, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Talks between the United Auto Workers union and General Motors (Charts, Fortune 500) are expected to resume Tuesday. The UAW launched a strike against GM on Monday, with 73,000 UAW members walking off the job, after the two sides failed to reach a labor contract.

In global trade, most Asian markets finished the session higher, while European stocks declined in morning trading.