(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock

markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)

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Futures down: Dow 0.58%, S&P 500 0.92%, Nasdaq 1.38%

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Applied Materials ( AMAT ) falls after reduced China spending

forecast

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Cidara Therapeutics ( CDTX ) soars on Merck's ( MRK ) buyout deal

(Updates with quote, prices)

By Twesha Dikshit and Purvi Agarwal

Nov 14 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures slid on

Friday, signaling a fresh round of selloff on Wall Street after

hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials added to doubts

about an interest rate cut in December.

The three major U.S. stock indexes posted their steepest

one-day declines in over a month on Thursday, with heavyweight

tech stocks leading the slump, after a growing number of Fed

policymakers signaled reticence on further easing.

Investors continued to dump technology and AI stocks on

worries about stretched valuations that have led to several

bouts of selloff in recent weeks and put the Nasdaq on course

for a second consecutive week of losses.

John Belton, portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds, said

that market winners were being sold and a "reversion" for

underperforming sectors such as healthcare and outperforming

sectors such as technology were among reasons for the pullback.

At 7:20 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 276 points,

or 0.58%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 62 points, or 0.92%

and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 346.75 points, or

1.38%.

The CBOE volatility index, Wall Street's fear

gauge, touched a one-week high earlier and was last up 2.26

points at 22.26.

Fed speakers on Thursday added to dimming expectations

of policy easing. St. Louis President Alberto Musalem said

caution was needed, while Cleveland's head, Beth Hammack, said

restrictive policy would help tackle inflation. Minneapolis'

Neel Kashkari told Bloomberg News he had been against October's

rate cut.

Expectations for a 25 point rate cut in December fell to

49.6% from last week's 67%, according to CME Group's FedWatch

tool.

"Market sentiment is swinging wildly this week, reflecting a

clash of narratives that has left investors struggling to find

direction," said Daniela Hathorn, senior market analyst at

Capital.com.

The historic U.S. government shutdown, which ended on

Thursday, led to an economic data drought, leaving the Fed and

traders flying blind and rekindled concerns about the health of

the labor market and the inflation outlook.

Despite the reopening, some data gaps are likely to be

permanent with the White House casting doubt on employment and

Consumer Price Index reports for October ever being released.

Among others, Applied Materials ( AMAT ) shares dropped 6.6%

in premarket trading after the company flagged expectations of

weaker China spending next year on tighter U.S. export control

curbs.

Other chipmakers also fell, with AI bellwether Nvidia ( NVDA )

down 3.2%. Broadcom ( AVGO ), Intel ( INTC ) and

Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) fell between 2% and 4%.

Nvidia's ( NVDA ) results next week could further break or make the

rally that has been the main driver behind indexes hitting

all-time record highs this year.

Warner Bros Discovery ( WBD ) shares gained 2.8%. The

entertainment company said it had amended CEO David Zaslav's

employment agreement amid a strategic review of its business.

Cidara Therapeutics ( CDTX ) more than doubled after Merck ( MRK )

said it will acquire the company in a nearly $9.2

billion deal, gaining access to an experimental drug for flu

prevention.