US stock index futures rebounded after a sharp Europe-sparked selloff Monday, positive despite bad news out of the retail sector.
Leading electronics retailer Best Buy missed its earnings targets and sale shares tumble, while a separate report showed retail sales considerably weaker in November than expected.
Retail sales rose just 0.2 percent, well below expectations of 0.5 percent, according to an initial reading of pre-holiday activity.
The reading "suggests that the start of the holiday shopping season has not been half as strong as retailers’ spectacular Black Friday sales reports suggested," said Paul Dales, senior US economist at Capital Economics in Toronto.
A Treasury bill auctionin Spain provided at least a bit of hope that investors were showing some confidence in European debt. The sale produced a yield a full percentage point lower than a month ago, though the rate was still elevated.
The Federal Reserve will announce results of its monthly meeting at 2:15 p.m. New York time, but market watchers do not expect any change in the central bank's monetary stance.
"We expect the (Fed Open Market) Committee to focus on the risks to the outlook and to adopt new language aimed at improving its 'guidance' about the likely path of future policy moves, despite recognizing that December is not ideal for policy changes due to market illiquidity and the lack of a press conference," George Goncalves, fixed income strategist at Nomura, wrote in a note to clients.