U.S. stock futures fell Friday after disappointing results from General Electric cast a pall on the coming earnings season.

The company reported a surprise 6% drop in first-quarter earnings and cut its 2008 outlook, blaming its financial-services business.

GE blamed much, but not all, of the below-forecast results on an inability to complete asset sales because of financial-market conditions, as well as higher mark-to-market losses.

In Canadian earnings news, CanWest Global Communications missed Street expectations with a 9% rise in quarterly revenue to $702 million but a net loss of $34 million, hit by long-term liabilities, foreign currency items and restructuring costs.

In Canadian economic news, the increase in new housing prices in slowed in February, following two consecutive months in which the rate of growth was gaining speed, Statistics Canada said.

Nationally, contractors’ selling prices rose 6.2% between February 2007 and February 2008, a slower pace than the year-over-year increase of 6.5% in January.

Prices rose 0.3% between January and February, StatsCan said.

The Canadian dollar opened at US98.41¢, up 0.26 cent.

South of the border, U.S. import prices surged in March, lifted by not only oil but also the biggest jump in nonpetroleum costs on record.

Overall import prices rose 2.8% last month, after increasing an unrevised 0.2% in February, the U.S. Labour Department said today. Wall Street expected import prices to climb 2.1% in March.

During the 12 months since March 2007, prices increased 15%. Between March 2006 and March 2007, prices climbed by 2.8%.

Light sweet crude oil fell 9¢ to $110.02 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Overseas, Asian markets had closed generally higher, with a gain of 2.9% in Tokyo and 2% in Hong Kong.

In Europe, the FTSE 100 index was down 1% near midday in London, while the German DAX declined 1.4% and the Paris CAC-40 was off 0.8%.

While most sectors closed in the black Thursday, financials and base metals displayed the only real muscle in Toronto markets.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 159.03 points, or 1.16%, at 13,909.58.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index closed up 5.58 points, or 0.22%, at 2,567.45.

In New York, markets close up after two days of losses, despite weak retail sales reports.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 54.72 points, or 0.44%, to end at 12,581.98. The S&P 500 rose 6.06 points, or 0.45%, to close at 1,360.55.

Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index was a big gainer, closing up 29.58 points, or 1.27%, at 2,351.70.