U.S. MARKET AVERAGES

U.S. stock futures lacked direction Monday morning, predicting a flat to lower opening on profit taking, following strong performances in the final two sessions last week when results from Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and interest rate speculations sent stocks higher and the Dow to nearly triple-digit gains.

Market is expected to remain cautious ahead of Fed Reserve’s meeting, the last to be presided over by Alan Greenspan, an earnings report from Exxon Mobil Corp., and the OPEC’s closely watched meeting.

On Tuesday, the Federal Reserve will announce its next interest rate decision. Another quarter-point hike is expected, though it is not clear what the central bank will say in its policy statement.

Exxon Mobil, oil producing giant, reported Q4 profit of $1.71 a share on revenue growth, exceeding estimates of $1.44 a share.

On the merger-and-acquisitions front, Citigroup and investor Cerberus Capital Management may bid between $11.5 billion and $15 billion for the profitable General Motors Acceptance Corp. unit of General Motors Corp.

Colony Capital and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal agreed to buy Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc. for $3.9 billion, or $45 a share, including assumed debt.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC resumed takeover talks of Switzerland's Serono SA at a price of less than the $15 billion that the biotech's management originally wanted.

Dow Jones futures were recently lower 18 points, S&P 500 futures were recently down 1.8 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures were off 1 point.

ECONOMIC NEWS

Monday morning, the Department of Commerce released its report on personal income and spending in the month of December. The report showed that spending rose slightly more than expected while income rose in line with economist estimates.

The Commerce Dept. said that personal spending rose 0.9 percent in December following an upwardly revised 0.5 percent increase in November. Economists had expected spending to rise 0.8 percent compared to the 0.3 percent growth originally reported for November.

The report also showed that personal income rose 0.4 percent in December, matching the increase seen in the previous month. As mentioned above, the personal income growth came in line with economist estimates.

With personal spending outpacing personal income, personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income was a negative 0.7 percent in December, compared with a negative 0.2 percent in November.

Additionally, the Commerce Dept. said that its price index for consumers was unchanged in December after falling 0.4 percent in November. Excluding food and energy prices, the index rose 0.1 percent in December following a 0.2 percent increase in the previous month.

On an annual basis, the index rose 2.8 percent in December, the same as in November. The core index rose at an annual rate of 1.9 percent for the third consecutive month.

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS NEWS

Asian-Pacific benchmarks closed in the positive with only four bourses actively trading on Monday as many regional markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday. The Nikkei continued to build on the strong Friday finish when it hit a five-year high of 3.6%. The index rose 1.3% in the morning but later rebounded to close up 0.55%. Australia’s All Ordinaries gained 0.5%, Manila’s PSE advanced 0.47%, while Singapore Straits Times ended flat.

European stocks lost ground Monday morning, following a strong performance Friday when a merger deal in the steel sector provided a boost. Stocks turned mixed amid disappointing reports from two major French companies. The German DAX 30 edged up 0.1%, the French CAC 40 declined 0.2%, and London’s FTSE 100 inched down to 0.04%.

OIL, METALS, CURRENCIES