US STOCKS-Futures fall as interest rate concerns grow

                                

                                
 * Concerns over possible interest rate hike grow
                                
 * Fed's Bernanke to speak at 12:45 p.m.
                                
 * Futures off: S&P 2.3 pts, Dow 41 pts, Nasdaq 8 pts
                                
(Adds details, byline, quote, updates prices)
                                
 By Leah Schnurr
                                
 NEW YORK, Dec 7 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were
lower on Monday on growing sentiment U.S. interest rates could
rise sooner than had been anticipated following last week's
surprisingly optimistic jobs report.
                                
 Interest rate concerns will be at the forefront with
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke scheduled to speak at the
Economic Club of Washington at 12:45 p.m. (1700 GMT). Data on
Friday showed U.S. employers cut 11,000 jobs in November, far
fewer than expected and the smallest decline since the start of
the recession in December 2007.
                                
 Keeping interest rates near zero has been part of the
Federal Reserve's efforts to thaw credit markets and pull the
economy out of recession. Investors are wary the central bank
will raise rates before the economic recovery has been firmly
established.
                                
 "With the job report from Friday bolstering confidence in
an economic rebound, there seems to be a growing talk that
interest rates will rise," said Andre Bakhos, president of
Princeton Financial Group in North Brunswick, New Jersey.
                                
 "There's only so much money that can be thrown at the
economy. At some point it has to end and the fear is, it's not
going to be pretty."
                                
 Higher interest rates would also boost the U.S. dollar,
which has traded in an inverse relationship to equities
lately.
                                
 S&P 500 futures <SPc1> fell 2.5 points and were below fair
value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account
interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures <DJc1> slipped
41 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> dipped 8 points.
                                
 Stocks climbed on Friday with the jobs report brightening
the outlook for the economy and profits.
                                
 The projected long-term cost of the U.S. government's
bailout of the nation's big banks is going to be at least $200
billion less than previously thought, a Treasury Department
official said on Sunday night. For details, see
[ID:nN07148822]
                                
 Cadbury Plc <CBRY.L> said it would post a formal response
to Kraft Food Inc's <KFT.N> $16 billion takeover offer on Dec.
14. [ID:nGEE5B60BO]
                                
 Citigroup Inc <C.N> is trying to persuade the U.S.
government to allow it to repay $20 billion in taxpayer funds
before a window to launch a share sale effectively shuts by the
middle of next week, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.
[ID:nN06145586]
                                
 Also in the financial sector, five senior executives at
American International Group Inc <AIG.N> told the insurer last
week they may quit if their compensation is cut significantly
by the U.S. pay czar, the Wall Street Journal reported on
Sunday.
                                
 Energy giant Exxon Mobil Corp <XOM.N> has made final a gas
sales contract with Japan's Tokyo Electric Power <9501.T> for
its project in Papua New Guinea, putting the $15 billion
development on track for approval on Tuesday. [ID:nSYD429282]
                                
 Intel Corp <INTC.O> has scrapped plans to launch an
advanced graphics chip based on its novel Larrabee design after
concluding that delays in the project would make it
uncompetitive, a spokesman said on Sunday. [ID:nN06145517]
 (Editing by Padraic Cassidy)