NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are headed for a lower opening as investors assess the economic fallout of a massive earthquake in Japan.
The devastating earthquake and tsunami along Japan’s northeast coast killed thousands of people and led to what is expected to be billions in dollars of damage. That raised fears of an economic slowdown in the world’s third-largest economy.
Oil prices fell $1.59 to $99.57 a barrel Monday, and Japan’s central bank pumped a record $184 billion into money market accounts to encourage bank lending.
In the U.S., Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said it would purchase chemical company Lubrizol for $9 billion in cash.
Ahead of the opening, Dow Jones industrial average futures are down 59, or 0.5 percent, at 11,944. Standard & Poor’s 500 futures are down 7, or 0.6 percent, at 1,294. Nasdaq 100 futures are down 18, or 0.8 percent, at 2,285.
