Stocks: Investors pause after 4-day rally

July 1, 2011: 8:29 AM ET
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks were set to open the new month on a quiet note Friday, following a week of strong gains, as investors await reports on manufacturing and consumer sentiment.

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were little changed ahead of the opening bell. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance.

Volume is expected to be light as many market participants head out for the holiday weekend. U.S. markets are closed Monday in observance of Independence Day.

Stocks ended the first half of the year solidly higher Thursday, following a turbulent six months.

All three major indexes rallied for four days in a row, helped by a strong economic report on business activity in the Midwest and the latest positive developments out of Greece.

On Thursday, the Greek Parliament voted to implement an austerity package aimed at reducing the country's giant budget deficits. The vote sets the stage for the nation to secure the final $17 billion of a $156 billion international relief package.

Market outlook: More turbulence ahead

Economy: The ISM's manufacturing index comes out at 10 a.m. ET, with economists looking for a reading of 51.1 versus May's reading of 53.5.

Investors will also get May construction spending figures from the Commerce Department, as well as the final read on University of Michigan's May consumer sentiment survey.

Companies: Major auto makers including General Motors (GM, Fortune 500), Toyota (TM) and Ford (F, Fortune 500) are scheduled to report their May sales figures starting around 11 a.m. ET. Shares of Ford were up 1% before the market open.

Shares of education company Apollo Group Inc. (APOL, Fortune 500) jumped more than 1% in premarket trading, after reporting third-quarter earnings late Thursday that beat expectations.

Meanwhile, shares of Eastmak Kodak (EK, Fortune 500) slid 16% in premarket trading, a day after the company received a mixed ruling on the company's patent infringement suit against Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) and Research in Motion (RIMM).

Cablevision (CVC, Fortune 500) spun off AMC Networks, known for popular hits like Mad Men. AMC will start trading on the Nasdaq Friday under the ticker "AMCX." Cablevision shareholders are getting one share of AMC Networks for every four shares of Cablevision.

World markets: European stocks were mixed in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.3%, the DAX in Germany was flat, and France's CAC 40 was up 0.1%.

Asian markets ended the session mixed. The Shanghai Composite ticked down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong soared 1.5% and Japan's Nikkei added 0.5%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro, the Japanese yen and the British pound.

Don't fear the commodities bear

Oil for August delivery slipped 88 cents to $94.54 a barrel.

Gas prices snapped a 27-day streak of declines Friday. The price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline increased nine tenths of a cent to $3.550, according to motorist group AAA.

Gold futures for August delivery fell $11.10 to $1,491.70 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury edged higher, pushing the yield down to 3.15% from 3.16% late Thursday.  To top of page

Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed3.80%3.88%
15 yr fixed3.20%3.23%
5/1 ARM3.84%3.88%
30 yr refi3.82%3.93%
15 yr refi3.20%3.23%
Rate data provided
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