Watch out, Wall Street

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks looked set for a punishing start Thursday as ongoing worries about the housing sector, soaring oil prices and weak earnings hurt sentiment.

At 8:44 a.m. ET, futures were lower, pointing to a negative open for Wall Street.

Stocks got off to a strong start Wednesday but pared some gains as credit and housing concerns resurfaced.

Weak earnings in the housing sector and elsewhere added to pressure Thursday.

D.R. Horton, the nation's No. 2 builder by revenue, reported its first-ever quarterly loss Thursday, while No. 8 builder Beazer Homes also came in with a loss. After the close Wednesday, No. 3 builder Pulte Homes and No. 9 Ryland Group also reported losses, although both losses were slightly less than forecasts.

Dow component Exxon Mobil (Charts, Fortune 500), the nation's largest oil company, posted a decline in net profit, although revenue came in ahead of expectations. Exxon shares lost about 1 percent in premarket trading.

Embattled automaker Ford Motor (Charts, Fortune 500) posted an unexpected quarterly profit early Thursday.

One bright spot came from Apple (Charts, Fortune 500), which posted results that beat Wall Street's estimates after the market Wednesday. Shares rose 6 percent in premarket trading.

On the economic front, orders for big-ticket items meant to last three years or more rose less than expected in June. Durable goods orders rose 1.4 percent last month, versus forecasts for a gain of 2 percent.

Investors will also take in a report on June new home sales, due at 10 a.m. ET, and economists are forecasting yet another drop in the pace of sales there. Concerns about weak home sales and rising mortgage defaults have battered U.S. stocks this week.

In major corporate news, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (Charts) has acquired a small stake in Kraft Foods (Charts), joining activist investors Carl Icahn and Nelson Peltz in holding a piece of the food company, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Major Asian markets declined, and European stocks tumbled in afternoon trading.

The dollar was lower against the euro and the yen in early trading.

Treasury prices rose, taking the yield on the 10-year note to 4.85 percent from 4.91 percent late Wednesday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Oil prices briefly climbed above the $77 a barrel mark, and was up $1.07 to $76.95 a barrel in electronic trading.