Stocks set for a flat open

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks were headed for a flat open Wednesday, as investors digested a better-than-expected report on durable good orders and await Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech later this week.

Dow Jones industrial average (INDU), S&P 500 (SPX) and Nasdaq (COMP) futures were down about 0.1% ahead of the opening bell. Stock futures indicate the possible direction of the markets when they open at 9:30 a.m. ET.

U.S. stocks posted major advances on Tuesday, as weak U.S. economic data fueled hopes that the Fed may announce steps to jumpstart the sluggish economy at the Kansas City Fed's annual retreat in Jackson Hole, Wyo., on Friday.

At last year's meeting, Bernanke prepared the market for QE2 -- a bond-buying program that is widely credited for supporting stocks earlier this year.

That's keeping investors on edge this week.

While markets are hoping for Bernanke to say that QE3 is on the way, most economists don't believe the Fed chief will signal any changes in monetary policy.

When the Fed pledged to keep rates low until mid-2013 earlier this month, three district bank presidents voted against the measure.

Economy: Orders for durable goods rose 4% in July, after slipping 1.3% the previous month, according to a report from the Commerce Department. The reading was better than economists' forecast for a 1.9% rise in orders.

Excluding volatile transportation orders, durable goods orders rose 0.7%, Economists were expecting the figure to fall 0.5%.

Durable goods, or items designed to last two years or longer, are typically purchased by consumers and corporations when they feel confident about the economy.

Companies: Shares of Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) slipped 1% in premarket trading. The bank's stock has been taking a harsh beating amid investor nervousness over the BofA's balance sheet and its continued exposure to mortgage-related losses.

Sprint's (S, Fortune 500) stock edged up 2% in early trading. On Tuesday, the carrier's shares jumped 10% on reports that Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) was going to bring an iPhone model to Sprint's PCS network.

Applied Materials (AMAT, Fortune 500) reports its quarterly results after the closing bell.

World markets: European stocks were modestly higher in morning trading. Britain's FTSE (FTSE) 100 rose 0.2%, the DAX (DAX) in Germany gained 1% and France's CAC (CAC) 40 added 0.3%.

In Asia, Japan's Nikkei ended with a 1.1% drop after Moody's Investors Service downgraded its rating on Japan's government debt by one notch to Aa3. The ratings agency blamed the build-up of debt since the 2009 global recession and the frequent changes in political leadership that have prevented the government from implementing effective economic and fiscal policies.

Following the downgrade, the Japanese finance minister announced a new $100 billion fund in another attempt to curb the yen's strength. The fund will be used to make loans to the private sector to promote overseas investment and export.

Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda also unveiled a rule that will require major financial institutions to report their currency trading positions.

Other Asian markets also retreated. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.5%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 2.1%.

Currencies and commodities: The lost ground against the euro and the Japanese yen, but edged higher versus the British pound.

Oil for October delivery slipped 21 cents to $85.23 a barrel.

Gold futures for December delivery fell $13.50 to $1,847.80 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 2.13% from 2.14% late Tuesday.