NEW YORK, Jan 17 — US stock index futures started the week lower ahead of quarterly results from Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, with downbeat economic data from China denting investor sentiment globally today.

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were set to wrap up a mixed season for big bank earnings with their fourth-quarter results due before the bell. Shares of both banks were down about 0.8 per cent in premarket trading.

Their results will follow those of JPMorgan Chase & Co and Bank of America Corp, which beat quarterly earnings estimates last week.

Wells Fargo & Co and Citigroup Inc earnings, though, fell short of expectations, with most big Wall Street lenders putting away rainy-day funds to prepare for a possible recession.

Analysts expect year-over-year earnings from S&P 500 companies to decline 2.2 per cent for the quarter, according to Refinitiv data as of Friday.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq indexes closed at one-month highs on Friday, with the former up 4.2 per cent so far in 2023. The US stock market was closed yesterday for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.

After steep falls in 2022, markets have had a positive start this year as data showing a fall in consumer prices in December and a moderation in wage growth bolstered expectations of less aggressive interest rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve.

Investors await data on retail sales, existing home sales for December and jobless claims later in the week, besides comments from several Fed officials for cues on the central bank’s monetary tightening plans.

At 5:58 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 61 points, or 0.18 per cent, S&P 500 e-minis were down 9 points, or 0.22 per cent, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 35.5 points, or 0.31 per cent.

US-listed China stocks such Alibaba Group Holdings Inc , JD.Com Inc and Baidu Inc fell more than 2.50 per cent after China reported slower fourth-quarter economic growth compared with the previous quarter.

Among other companies, United Airlines Holdings Inc was set to report results after the bell. — Reuters