Futures pause after last week's rally; Jackson Hole in focus
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Kashkari says appropriate to debate Sept rate cut - report
Estee Lauder drops on downbeat FY profit forecast
AMD up on plans to acquire ZT Systems for $4.9 bln
Futures: Dow down 0.01%, S&P 500 up 0.05%, Nasdaq up 0.05%
Updated at 0713 a.m. ET/1113 GMT
By Shashwat Chauhan and Johann M Cherian
Aug 19 (Reuters) -U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Monday after Wall Street notched up its best week of the year, while investors looked ahead to FederalReserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole for rate-cut indications.
All three major indexes jumped last week as a set ofeconomic data, including a consumer price index reading and a retail sales report, soothed investor concerns of a recession inthe world's largest economy.
The gains came after a rout across global markets earlier in the month that was triggered by a higher-than-expected increase in the U.S. unemployment rate for July.
Goldman Sachs lowered the odds of the United States slipping into a recession in the next 12 months to 20% from 25% following the latest weekly jobless claims and retail sales reports.
Minutes from the Fed's last policy meeting are due on Wednesday and Powell will speak at the economic symposium in Jackson Hole on Friday, with investors keeping an eye out for any signs of acknowledgement of a rate cut in September.
"We expectPowell to provide a sense of calm to the markets, indicating that the Fed is moving towards a rate cut but there is no need to panic," analysts at Jefferies said.
"He would likely acknowledge the slowdown in the employment picture but indicate that the broader economy still remainsresilient."
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said the debate about potentially cutting interest rates in September is an appropriate one to have because of a rising possibility of a weakening labor market, according to areport.
Over the weekend, Chicago Fed chief Austan Goolsbee said not cutting rates next month could hurt the job market, while a report showed San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said it was timeto consider adjusting borrowing costs.
Traderscurrently see a 73.5% chance of the Fed cutting interest rates by 25 basis points (bps) in September, compared with an even split between a 50 and 25 bps cut seen a week ago, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Investors are also awaiting commentsfrom Fed Board Governor Christopher Waller later on Monday.
At 07:13 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were down 4 points, or 0.01%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were up 2.75 points, or 0.05%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 11 points, or 0.06%.
Earnings from cybersecurity company Palo Alto Networks PANW.O, retailer Target TGT.N and home improvement chain Lowe's LOW.N are expected through the week.
Advanced Micro Devices AMD.O rose 2.7% after the chipmaker said it plans to acquire server maker ZT Systems for $4.9 billion, toexpand its portfolio of artificial intelligence chips and hardware and compete better withNvidia NVDA.O.
Estee Lauder EL.N fell 5.6% after the cosmetics maker forecast annual profit below expectations.
B. Riley Financial RILY.O slid 12.8% following a drop of over 65% last week. Co-founder and co-CEO Bryant Riley had offered to buy the bank on Friday, following its warning of a hit from its investment in Vitamin Shoppe-owner Franchise Group.
Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Devika Syamnath
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