NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- U.S. stocks were set for a weak start Monday, as investors awaited a report on new home sales and braced for another round of earnings due out this week.
Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were narrowly lower ahead of the opening bell.
Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.
U.S. stocks finished higher last week, boosted by strong financial results, which offset worries about the European debt crisis and pace of the global economic recovery.
"Since there isn't much else going on this week, everyone's going to be looking closely at earnings reports from the bigger companies that propel the market, and [results] have been really good and better than expected so far," said Dave Rovelli, managing director at Canaccord Adams.
Earnings: It's still early in the reporting period, and 157 companies are on tap to post their results this week.
Earnings are currently on track to have risen 34% from a year ago, according to earnings tracker Thomson Reuters.
This week, second-quarter results from Dow components Boeing (BA, Fortune 500), DuPont (DD, Fortune 500), Exxon Mobil (XOM, Fortune 500), Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500) and Merck (MRK, Fortune 500) are on deck. Also, BP (BP) reports Tuesday, the first snapshot of the company's performance during the quarter in which the oil spill began.
Economy: A report on new home sales will be released at 10 a.m. ET. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expect that sales rose at a seasonally adjusted rate of 310,000 last month.
"If we get good housing data this morning, we could see a continuation of last week's rally," said Rovelli.
Companies: BP's (BP) board is planning to meet in London Monday evening. The meeting comes amid reports that the company is planning to announce the departure of CEO Tony Hayward.
World markets: European shares edged lower in the early going as investors digested the results of stress tests published after European markets closed Friday.
Britain's FTSE 100, the CAC 40 in France and Germany's DAX posted slim losses in morning trading.
Asian markets finished the session in positive territory. Japan's benchmark Nikkei index rose 0.8%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 0.2% and the Shanghai Composite gained 0.7%.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar was down versus the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.
U.S. light crude oil for September delivery fell 81 cents to $78.17 a barrel.
COMEX gold's August contract gained $1.90 to $1,189.70 per ounce.
Bonds: Treasury prices rose, and the yield on the 10-year note edged lower to 2.99% from 3% late Friday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions. 
| Overnight Avg Rate | Latest | Change | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 yr fixed | 3.80% | 3.80% | |
| 15 yr fixed | 3.09% | 3.11% | |
| 5/1 ARM | 2.65% | 2.69% | |
| 30 yr refi | 3.77% | 3.86% | |
| 15 yr refi | 3.09% | 3.21% |
Today's featured rates:
| Index | Last | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dow | 12,454.83 | -74.92 | -0.60% |
| Nasdaq | 2,837.53 | -1.85 | -0.07% |
| S&P 500 | 1,317.82 | -2.86 | -0.22% |
| Treasuries | 1.74 | -0.01 | -0.80% |
| Company | Price | Change | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank of America Corp... | 7.15 | 0.01 | 0.14% |
| Sprint Nextel Corp | 2.62 | 0.09 | 3.56% |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 16.33 | -0.06 | -0.37% |
| Chesapeake Energy Co... | 15.81 | 0.23 | 1.48% |
| Ford Motor Co | 10.60 | 0.01 | 0.09% |
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