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Futures off: Dow 0.14%, S&P 0.30%, Nasdaq 0.64%

March 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures dipped on

Tuesday as investors awaited a slew of economic data and several

key events this week, including appearances from Federal Reserve

Chair Jerome Powell.

Investors eyed U.S. services sector data for February and

factory orders data for January due at 10:00 a.m. ET that could

provide further insight into the health of the U.S. economy.

The benchmark S&P 500 hit a fresh intraday record

high on Monday before closing slightly lower as investor focus

turned to Powell's testimony before lawmakers on Wednesday and

Thursday that could offer more cues on the Fed's monetary policy

path.

"In this testimony, Powell will likely ask for more patience

regarding the timing of the first rate cut, he will probably say

that inflation is on the right path but that they don't want to

lower their guard too early," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a senior

market analyst at Swissquote Bank.

Traders see a 65.5% chance of the first rate cut this year

arriving in June, as per CME Group's FedWatch tool.

The Fed is under no urgent pressure to cut interest rates

given a "prospering" economy and job market, Atlanta Fed

President Raphael Bostic said in remarks on Monday, adding to

worries about rates being higher-for-longer.

Investors will be closely looking at speeches by other Fed

policymakers including Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr,

who is due to speak later in the day.

At 04:40 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 54 points,

or 0.14%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 15.25 points, or

0.3%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 116.25 points, or

0.64%.

Apple ( AAPL ) slid 1.6% in premarket trading after a

research report showed iPhone sales in China fell 24%

year-on-year in the first six weeks of 2024 as the U.S. company

faced increased competition from domestic rivals such as Huawei

.

Other megacap growth and technology stocks also declined,

with electric vehicle maker Tesla and AI darling Nvidia ( NVDA )

down 2.1% and 0.9%, respectively.

Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) fell 2.8% after a report that

the chipmaker hit a U.S. government roadblock in its efforts to

sell an artificial intelligence chip tailored for the Chinese

market.

Microstrategy ( MSTR ) shed 8.6% after the bitcoin

development company announced a private offering for $600

million in convertible senior notes, with proceeds to be used to

buy bitcoin.

Other major cryptocurrency-linked firms such as Riot

Platforms ( RIOT ) and Marathon Digital ( MARA ) fell 5.6% and

7.6%, respectively, as bitcoin eased.