Stocks set for cautious open
Consumer sentiment reading is among the factors investors will deal with Friday.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks were set for a cautious start Friday as investors moved to the sidelines after pushing Wall Street to multi-month highs the previous session.
At 8:45 a.m. ET, Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were 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.
Hopes that the economic recovery is underway lifted U.S. stocks Thursday. The blue-chip Dow closed at its highest level since January.
But investors remain on edge, which has led to volatile trading in the past week.
Peter Cardillo, chief market economist for Avalon Partners, said the markets could rally later if there's a positive report on consumer sentiment expected from the University of Michigan.
Cardillo also said the Iranian presidential race could impact the markets, which might get a lift if incumbent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is unseated by challenger Mir Hossein Moussavi.
"If the president goes down in defeat, that would be another plus," he said. "His candidate seems to be much more pro-West and much more level-headed."
Economy: Import prices rose 1.3% in May, the largest monthly increase since July of 2008, reported the government, which revised the April increase to 1.1%. The May increase was heavily influenced by an 8.3% jump in petroleum prices.
The price of exports increased 0.6% in May, compared to a 0.4% increase in April, the government said.
That's followed by the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index around 10 a.m. ET. The preliminary reading for June is expected to rise to 69.5 from 68.7 in May, according a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.
Autos: The House Energy subcommittee will hold a hearing on GM (GMGMQ) and Chrysler at 10 a.m. ET.
Companies: U.S. investment firm BlackRock (BLK, Fortune 500) agreed to buy BGI, the investment arm of British bank Barclays (BCS).
The $13.5 billion deal will make BlackRock the world's biggest money manager.
World markets: In Asia, stocks ended mostly higher. European shares were mixed in midday trading.
Oil and money: The price of oil fell $1.58 a barrel to $71.10. The dollar gained against major international currencies, including the euro and the British pound, but fell against the yen. 
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