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Futures down: Dow 0.32%, S&P 500 0.29%, Nasdaq 0.33%

Sept 22 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures inched

lower on Monday after Wall Street's main indexes rallied to

record highs in the previous session, while uncertainty around

President Donald Trump's visa policies also dimmed sentiment.

Markets were pausing after a tech-driven rally on Friday

pushed the three indexes to close at record highs for the second

consecutive session, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq logging

their third consecutive session of gains.

Meanwhile, investors awaited some clarity on the U.S.

president's new policy for visas for skilled workers after the

Trump administration said on Friday it would ask companies to

pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas.

Many sectors, especially U.S. technology, are heavily

reliant on skilled workers from India and China and the

announcement prompted them to warn visa holders to stay in the

U.S. or quickly return.

Most megacap companies such as Microsoft ( MSFT ) and

Amazon.com ( AMZN ) were stable in premarket trading.

J.P.Morgan Chase, which also advised employees

holding H-1B visas to remain in the U.S., inched 1.5% lower.

"The H-1B visa has been a key channel for U.S.-based tech,

finance, consulting, and services firms to access global skilled

talent ... the sharp increase in visa fees will raise costs for

companies dependent on these workers, with at least some of the

burden passed on to end clients," said analysts at UBS Global

Wealth Management.

At 05:33 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 151 points,

or 0.32%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 19.5 points, or

0.29% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 82.5 points, or

0.33%.

The Federal Reserve's expected quarter-point reduction to

interest rates last week and indications of more at upcoming

meetings added to Wall Street's recent rally, that was partly

fueled by a revived enthusiasm around AI-linked stock trading.

It also boosted optimism around small-cap companies in the

U.S., with the Russell 2000 hitting an intraday record

high on Friday. Futures linked to the index were down

0.1% in premarket trading.

Wall Street's three main indexes are in positive territory

so far in September - a month deemed historically bad for U.S.

equities. The benchmark S&P 500 has shed 1.4% on average in the

month since 2000, according to data compiled by LSEG.

A slew of economic data is scheduled for release this week,

including that for personal consumption expenditure - the Fed's

preferred gauge of inflation - and gross domestic product.

Markets will also parse through comments from a host of

policymakers on Monday, including Fed presidents John Williams,

Alberto Musalem and newly appointed Governor Stephen Miran.