* Futures up: Dow 0.58%, S&P 500 0.55%, Nasdaq 0.55%

* US consumer spending, core PCE inflation firmer in

January

* Meta down 1.3%; report says AI model 'Avocado' rollout

pushed to May or later

* SentinelOne slips 3.7% after bleak forecasts

(Updates to before markets open)

By Johann M Cherian and Utkarsh Hathi

March 13 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main stock indexes

were set to open higher on Friday, after sharp losses in the

previous session, while investors assessed a set of economic

data releases to gauge the interest rate outlook as the Middle

Eastconflict widens.

The Commerce Department's second estimate showed gross

domestic product increased by 0.7% in the previous quarter,

lower than the 1.4% growth expected by economists polled by

Reuters.

Another report showed the Personal Consumption Expenditure

index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, rose

2.8% in January, compared with economists' estimates of a 2.9%

rise.

The data did little to change expectations for the Fed's

monetary policy trajectory as traders priced in one

25-basis-point interest rate cut later this year, according to

LSEG-compiled data, compared with two before the war began on

February 28.

"Inflation remains elevated, sticky and with the

possibility of energy prices eventually moving into the

pipeline, the Fed is likely to stay on hold for a longer period

of time," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist, Spartan

Capital Securities.

The Fed will potentially leave interest rates unchanged when

it meets next week and spiking energy costs could complicate the

central bank's policy plans as other reports point to price

pressures and a softening job market.

The University of Michigan's initial estimate on consumer

sentiment in March, due at 10 a.m. ET, will show how people are

anticipating energy costs to fare in the coming months.

Crude prices hovered near $100 a barrel as hostilities in the

Middle East showed few signs of easing despite the Trump

administration's assurances of a swift resolution.

Efforts such as the International Energy Agency's record

emergency oil releases, and the U.S. 30-day license for

countries to buy Russian oil and petroleum products stranded at

sea failed to bring down the surge in costs.

At 08:48 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 271 points,

or 0.58%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 37 points, or 0.55%,

and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 134.75 points, or 0.55%.

Wall Street's fear gauge, the CBOE volatility index,

wavered and was last down 1.8 points at 25.37, while futures

tied to the rate-sensitive Russell 2000 index were up

0.7%.

The three main U.S. indexes were set for their third week in

the red with the financials-heavy Dow hit the hardest,

putting it on track for its biggest monthly losses since

December 2024.

Credit quality worries deepened this week after Morgan Stanley ( MS )

halted redemptions at one of its private credit funds,

following similar moves by BlackRock ( BLK ) and Blue Owl

in recent weeks.

JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) also restricted lending to private credit

players, while Blackstone faced a surge in redemptions.

Blue Owl's shares edged up 1% in premarket trading, while

BlackRock ( BLK ) edged up 0.8%.

Travel stocks, hit the most by the war and higher energy

costs, were marginally higher.

Airlines Alaska and American edged up 0.9%

each, along with Carnival and Norwegian Cruise.

Design software maker Adobe fell 8.5% as longtime CEO

Shantanu Narayen will leave his role once a successor is

appointed, renewing worries around its strategy as it grapples

with AI disruption.

Cybersecurity firm SentinelOne fell 3.7% after forecasting

quarterly profit below estimates.

Megacap Meta slipped 1.3% as a report said it postponed

the release of its artificial intelligence model "Avocado" to at

least May, from this month.

(Reporting by Johann M Cherian, Utkarsh Hathi in Bengaluru,

Stephen Culp in New York; Editing by Maju Samuel and Devika

Syamnath)