U.S. futures lower on German comments; Dow Jones down 0.10%

Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Monday, as investors confidence slightly weakened after Germany's finance minister dismissed hopes of a solution to the region's debt crisis by the end of the week.

Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a fall of 0.10%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.15% drop, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.27% decline.

German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said that the forthcoming European summit on October 23 would not offer a definitive solution to the euro zone's financial crisis.

G-20 finance ministers and central bankers had urged European leaders on Sunday to come up with a plan within the week, after endorsing measures to avoid a Greek default, recapitalize European banks and enhance the euro zone's bailout fund.

Oil and gas companies posted sharp gains, with shares in Pioneer Natural Resources surging 7.85% and Tesoro Corp jumping 6.80%, while Chevron shares rose 2.74%.

Meanwhile, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold saw shares rise 4.34%, after saying it halted copper and gold production on Monday at its giant Grasberg mine in Indonesia because of security fears and worker blockades. This was the worst supply disruption since a strike began one month ago.

In other corporate news, Kinder Morgan saw shares rise 0.15% after striking a USD21 billion deal to buy rival El Paso, combining the two largest natural gas pipeline operators in North America.

In the financial sector, stocks were mixed, with shares in Goldman Sachs advancing 0.60% and JPMorgan Chase climbing 0.92%, while Bank of America saw shares drop 0.48%.

Citigroup shares jumped 2.75% before publishing its third-quarter earnings, due before the open.

Elsewhere, Apple saw shares soar 3.32%, in line with other technology companies such as IBM and Cisco Systems with shares climbing 1.99% and 0.75% respectively.

Other stocks in focus included Wells Fargo and Halliburton, which were also due to report third-quarter earnings on Monday.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were mixed. The EURO STOXX 50 slipped 0.06%, France’s CAC 40 slumped 0.02%, Germany's DAX fell 0.30%, while Britain's FTSE 100 posted a 0.20% increase.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rallied 1.9%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index jumped 1.5%.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish official data on industrial production, as well as a report on manufacturing activity in New York state.