New York - US stock index futures dipped on Monday, indicating the S&P 500 may retreat from its most recent record high, ahead of data on retail sales.
* Investors will look to April retail sales data at 8:30 a.m. (14:30 SA time) for any signs of strength in the consumer.
Economists in a Reuters survey expect a 0.3 percent decrease compared with a 0.4 percent decrease in March. Excluding automobiles, sales are expected to fall 0.1 percent versus a 0.4 percent drop in March.
* The S&P 500 managed its third straight weekly gain on Friday, reaching a new record high after snapping a five-day streak of record closing highs on Thursday.
* S&P 500 futures lost 5.4 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 fell 40 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 11.75 points.
* Later in the session at 10 a.m. (16:00 SA time), data on March business inventories is due.
Economists in a Reuters survey expect an increase of 0.3 percent versus a 0.1 percent rise in February.
* Elan agreed to a $1 billion deal to buy 21 percent of the royalties that US company Theravance receives from GlaxoSmithKline for its respiratory drugs.
* KFC parent Yum Brands Inc reported on Friday an estimated 29 percent drop in April sales at established restaurants in China where a bird flu outbreak is pummeling sales that were recovering from an earlier food safety scare.
* SoftBank Corp has told banks that their financing of Dish Network Corp's $25.5 billion rival offer for Sprint Nextel Corp could hurt their chances of landing a role in a highly anticipated public offering of the Chinese e-commerce giant, two sources familiar with the situation said.
* European shares pulled back from five-year highs on Monday, led lower by struggling lender Commerzbank and some technical selling on overbought indexes.
* Strength in the dollar weighed on Asian shares, but Japanese equities outperformed on the back of the yen's slide to a fresh 4-1/2-year low against the US currency. - Reuters