* Bernanke says U.S. should avoid double-dip recession
* Goldman subpoenaed by crisis commission
* Futures up: Dow 51 pts, S&P 6.2 pts, Nasdaq 7.75 pts
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Adds Goldman comments deepwater drillers)
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, June 8 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were
slightly higher on Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben
Bernanke said the U.S. economy appeared to have enough momentum
to avoid a double-dip recession.
Bernanke, speaking at the Woodrow Wilson Center in
Washington, also said European leaders were committed to
ensuring the survival of the euro and had enough money to meet
obligations of heavily indebted member countries. For details,
see []
"You disseminate what Bernanke says and say that's good.
His opinion is we are not going to go into a double dip
recession and the euro zone is going to make it. But then you
get the second-guessers that say the fact that he had to say it
is disturbing," said Arthur Hogan, chief market analyst at
Jefferies & Co in Boston.
S&P 500 futures <SPc1> rose 6.2 points and were slightly
above 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>
gained 51 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures <NDc1> rose 7.75
points.
The euro <EUR=>, used by investors in recent weeks as a
barometer for euro-zone stability, slipped Tuesday, reversing
early gains and hovered near the four-year low against the
dollar.
"As soon as we find the level where the euro doesn't go
down every day, whether that level is at 1.20, 1.15 or 1.10,
you are going to have a market that keeps a keen eye on what
happens there and reacts to the movements in that," added
Hogan.
The increased volatility on Wall Street in recent weeks has
made investors more sensitive, backing away from the market at
the first hint of selling pressure.
In a bid to salvage confidence in financial markets,
finance ministers from the debt-stricken euro zone agreed on
Monday on a Special Purpose Vehicle to raise up to 440 billion
euros ($525.4 billion) to lend to nations that run into
Greek-style payments problems. []
Goldman Sachs Group Inc <GS.N> will be in focus after it
was subpoenaed by the commission probing the financial crisis.
Goldman flooded the panel with 2.5 billion pages of records,
increasing tensions in its relationship with the U.S.
government. []
Separately, Goldman lowered its view on the deepwater
drilling sector to "neutral" from "attractive" on expectations
the six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling will be
extended, bringing pressure on day rates and delayed pricing
power. []
U.S.-listed shares of Transocean Ltd <RIGN.S><RIG.N>
slipped 1.8 percent to $48.30 in premarket trading, while
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc <DO.N> shed 2.8 percent to
$57.58.
European shares fell on Tuesday, extending a decline to a
third day, on intensified worries about European debt levels,
with German utilities weaker as they face a tax hike.
[]
U.S. stocks fell on Monday, taking the S&P 500 to its
lowest close in seven months and down 13.7 percent from its
April 23 closing high for the year. The index is firmly in
correction territory.
(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)
