Futures hint at tough open
Investors sidelined ahead of Fed policy statement; oil climbs; reports on consumer confidence and home prices on deck.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stock futures tumbled early Tuesday, as high oil prices and worries about corporate profits hung over investors ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting on interest rates.
At 9:13 a.m. ET, Nasdaq and S&P futures were lower, with a comparison to fair value suggesting a negative start for Wall Street.
Energy Oil prices pushed higher in electronic trading Tuesday as traders remained concerned about output. U.S. crude for August delivery added 51 cents to $137.25 a barrel.
A weaker dollar also helped push up the price of crude. Oil is traded in U.S. dollars, and when the dollar falls, oil becomes less expensive for foreign buyers.
High oil prices, coupled with declines among financial companies, have been the market's main focus recently.
"That's been one of the biggest themes of the past two weeks," said Art Hogan. chief market analyst with Jefferies & Co.
Stocks ended mixed Monday as ongoing woes in the financial and auto sectors, along with volatile oil prices, took a toll on sentiment.
Corporate news UPS (UPS, Fortune 500) lowered its profit outlook for the second quarter late Monday as high fuel prices took their toll on business. UPS shares fell more than 3% in after-hours trading Monday.
Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) could take $8 billion in new writedowns in the second quarter, according to analysts at Merrill Lynch.
Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) shares may be active during the session. The Wall Street Journal reported the Internet giant plans to unveil a new service for advertisers that measures Web use.
Drug companies Eli Lilly (LLY, Fortune 500) and Daiichi Sankyo said late Monday that the Food and Drug Administration had extended the review deadline for its experimental anti-clotting drug prasugrel.
NYSE Euronext (NYX), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, announced that it would be paying $250 million for a 25% stake in Qatar's Doha Securities Market, the company's largest ever investment in a foreign exchange.
Fed meeting Trading on Wall Street could be choppy as investors await the policy statement that will accompany the Fed's decision on interest rates on Wednesday.
The central bank is widely expected to keep rates steady at the meeting, which gets underway today. But traders are looking for clues about whether the Fed is inclined to raise rates at future meetings to combat inflation.
Economy On the economic front, the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller national home price index revealed that housing prices fell 15.3% in April compared to the same period a year ago.
A reading on consumer confidence is due at 10 a.m. ET. The Conference Board is expected to report that its index of consumer confidence fell to 56 for June from a reading of 57.2 in May.
Other markets In global trade, Asian markets finished the session lower, with Japan's Nikkei falling for the fourth day in a row, and European shares tumbled in midday trading. 
