Wall St. Expected to Open Slightly Lower LONDON (Reuters) - Wall Street was expected to open slightly lower on Friday but United Technologies Corp. (UTX.N: Quote , Profile , Research ) may climb after its chief executive gave an upbeat outlook. Key economic data may also affect stocks. Producer prices and the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index are both scheduled for release. "Today is all about PPI and Michigan Consumer Confidence...(there is) nothing much in the way of corporate results to ruminate over," Cantor spokesman David Buik said. By 6 a.m. EST, U.S. stock futures pointed to opening losses between 0.17 percent and 0.19 percent the three main indexes. On Thursday the Dow Jones industrial average was up 58.59 points, or 0.56 percent, at 10,552.82. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 6.43 points, or 0.54 percent, at 1,189.24. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index was up 2.90 points, or 0.14 percent, at 2,129.01. UNITED TECHNOLOGIES EYED Shares of diversified manufacturer United Technologies Corp. (UTX.N: Quote , Profile , Research ) nudged 1 percent higher in post-market trading on Thursday, after its chief executive declared the company is in the best shape in a "long time." Chief Executive George David predicted earnings per share will grow between 10 percent and 15 percent in 2005. Shares rose to $100.50 on the Inet electronic brokerage in light trading from their $99.45 close on the New York Stock Exchange. But shares of casino table game maker Shuffle Master Inc. (SHFL.O: Quote , Profile , Research ) fell more than 4 percent in extended hours of trading after its board of directors approved a three-for-two split of its common stock. Additional shares will be issued on Jan. 14 to shareholders of record as of Jan. 3, the Las Vegas company said in a statement. Shares fell to $42.30 on Inet from their Nasdaq close of $44.27. Shares of magazine distributor Source Interlink (SORC.O: Quote , Profile , Research ) fell more than 2 percent, to $12.99 from their $13.31 close. The company said it was still on track to report $370 million of revenues for fiscal 2005. It reported third-quarter earnings of 18 cents a share.     Continued ... Quelle "Wall St. Expected to Open Slightly Lower" : reuters.com Main page for "Wall St. Expected to Open Slightly Lower"