Stocks set for lackluster start
Investors react to year-over-year deflation and General Motors' announcement of dealer closings.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks were set for a weak start Friday as investors reacted to a report on consumer prices and awaited word from General Motors about dealer closings.
At 8:50 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were slightly lower.
Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance and offer an indication of how markets may open when trading begins in New York.
U.S. stocks rose Thursday, as investors overlooked weak economic readings and waded back into the market after the recent selloff.
General Motors (GM, Fortune 500) could be eliminating up to 2,600 dealers, or 42% of its total. On Thursday, Chrysler notified 789 dealers -- about a quarter of its total network -- that they would get the ax.
Robert Brusca, chief economist at Fact and Opinion Economics, said the markets were experiencing a mild decline as they "reset" themselves following their rally over the past two months.
"The markets are trying to sort things out," said Brusca. "I think it's good to have a correction. In doing this, you have a base."
Economy: The Consumer Price Index, the most important measure of inflation for consumers, fell 0.7% year-over-year in April. That is the largest annual drop since June 1955, the Labor Department said.
The CPI for the month of April was flat compared to March, meeting the expectations of a consensus of economists from Briefing.com. In March, it slipped 0.1%.
The core CPI, excluding food and energy prices, rose 0.3% in April from the prior month, according to the government. That's more than the 0.1% increase that was expected by the Briefing.com consensus. In March, the core CPI increased 0.2%.
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey showed that New York manufacturers "worsened only modestly" in May, with the index showing -4.6, its worst level since August.
Insurers: The Treasury Department said Thursday that at least six insurers have qualified to access the government's bailout funds.
The insurers included Allstate (ALL, Fortune 500), Ameriprise Financial (AMP, Fortune 500), Hartford Financial Services Group (HIG, Fortune 500), Lincoln National (LNC, Fortune 500), Principal Financial (PFG, Fortune 500) and Prudential Financial (PRU, Fortune 500).
Companies: Nike (NKE, Fortune 500) plans to cut 5% of its workforce in a bid to cut costs.
JC Penney (JCP, Fortune 500) reported a plunge in first-quarter profit, to 11 cents per share compared to 54 cents during the prior year period. But the clothing retailer still managed to barely beat forecasts from analysts, who had expected profits of 10 cents per share, according to a consensus of projections from Thomson Reuters.
World markets: Stocks in Asia finished the session in positive territory. In Europe, major markets were lower in midday trading, losing earlier gains after figures showed that Europe sank deeper into recession in the first three months of this year.
Money and oil: The dollar rose against the euro and the British pound, but slipped against the yen. The price of oil fell $1.09 to $57.53 a barrel. 
