US pre-open: Stock futures fall as oil prices edge lower

US stocks are expected to open lower on Friday as oil prices fall and investors awaited data on retail sales.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 80 points to 17,588, S&P 500 futures shed 8.8 points to 2,050 and Nasdaq futures declined 19.75 points to 4,315.

At the same time oil prices dropped after Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday that he didn’t see the oil market balancing out until the first half of 2017, Reuters reported.

At 1233 BST, West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1.3% to $46.09 per barrel and Brent was down 0.9% to $47.63 per barrel.

In economic data the focus is US retail sales at 1330 BST with analysts pencilling in a 0.8% increase in April.

The University of Michigan releases its consumer confidence report for May at 1500 BST and business inventories data is also due at 1500 BST.

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco speaks in Sacramento at 2100 BST, following speeches from fellow policymakers Esther George, Eric Rosengren and Loretta Mester on Thursday.

George, Rosengren and Mester all hinted that the Fed should raise interest rates due to a strengthening economy.

Elsewhere, Asia stocks were under pressure as the Japanese yen strengthened against the dollar.

European stocks were mostly lower as the International Monetary Fund warned a vote by the UK to leave the European Union would have a detrimental impact on the economy.

Meanwhile, among US corporate stocks, Apple was in the red as it said it will invest $1bn in Didi Chuxing Technology, China’s competitor to Uber Technologies.

Royal Dutch Shell’s US-listed shares could move after an estimated 2,100 barrels of crude leaked from the company’s facility in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday.

J.C. Penney Co. Inc. was due to report results ahead of the open bell.