Worries hang over Wall Street

LONDON (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks were poised for a weak open Thursday as concerns about the health of the economy hung over investors.

At 4:24 a.m. ET, Nasdaq and S&P futures were little changed, suggesting a flat start for Wall Street.

Stocks tanked on Wednesday, with the Dow losing about 221 points, after oil prices reached the $100 a barrel level, reigniting recession fears.

Oil futures eased somewhat on Thursday, with the price of U.S., light crude falling 31 cents to $99.31 a barrel in electronic trading. But trading is likely to be volatile ahead of the release of the government's weekly inventory report, due at 10:30 a.m. ET.

Also on the economic calendar is a report on private sector employment, which comes a day ahead of the government's payrolls report. December auto sales and November factory orders also are on tap.

Overseas markets followed Wall Street lower. In Asia, Hong Kong stocks tumbled. Japanese markets were closed. European stocks fell in the early going.