By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

Dollar climbs to 12-year high against yen

U.S. investors took a cautious stance early on Thursday, with stock futures inching lower, as concerns about the timing of the first Federal Reserve rate hike hampered appetite for riskier assets.

Speeches from two Fed officials, as well as readings on weekly jobless claims and pending home sales, are on the docket.

These will be closely watched for "further indications of a Fed move on interest rates, in the absence of other boat-rocking news on that front," analysts at Accendo Markets said in a note.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) fell 29 points, or 0.2%, to 18,112, while those for the S&P 500 index (ESM5) dropped 2.65 points, or 0.1%, to 2,118.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index (NQM5) gave up 4.25 points, or 0.1%, to 4,538.

This suggests the benchmarks will pull back from the solid gains they posted on Wednesday (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid), when the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) closed at a record high.

Wednesday's advances partly came on the back of positive news out of Greece. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said the debt-laden country was in the final stages of reaching a deal with its international creditors. However, European officials poured cold water on the suggestion, saying there is still lots of work to be done before an agreement is ready.

The mixed messages over Greece were weighing on equities on Thursday, according to analysts.

Data: Weekly jobless claims for the week ended May 23 are due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. They are forecast to fall to 270,000, from 274,000 the week before. At 10 a.m.Eastern, the pending home-sales index for April is set for release.

Fed speakers: Speaking to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, John Williams, president of the San Francisco Fed, said the central bank shouldn't use interest-rate policy to address risks to financial stability (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/feds-williams-argues-against-using-monetary-policy-to-address-stability-concerns-2015-05-28). He also said the Fed is likely to raise rates later this year, reiterating Chairwoman Janet Yellen's view, expressed on Friday.

At 2:45 p.m. Eastern Time, Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota will give a speech on monetary policy in Helena, Montana. Kocherlakota is not a voting member of the Fed's policy-setting committee this year.

Speculation over the Fed rate hike has recently supported the dollar, with the greenback (USDJPY) jumping to a 12-year high against the yen (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-taps-a-12-year-high-against-yen-2015-05-28) on Thursday.

Earnings: Ahead of the bell, retailer Costco Wholesale Corp.(COST) said third-quarter profit rose as it got a boost from low gas prices, strong store sales and membership fees. Shares were down 0.8% premarket.

Also reporting premarket, Abercrombie & Fitch Co.(ANF) is projected to report a loss of 34 cents a share in the first quarter, according to a consensus survey by FactSet.

And after the closing bell, GameStop Corp.(GME) is forecast to post first-quarter earnings of 59 cents a share.

Movers and shakers:Avago Technologies Ltd.(AVGO) said it will buy rival chip maker Broadcom Corp.(BRCM) for $37 billion in cash and stock. Shares of Broadcom were up 0.9% ahead of the bell.

NXP Semiconductors NV(NXPI) could also be active, after the semiconductor manufacturer said it will sell its RF Power business to Jianguang Asset Management Co. for $1.8 billion.

Other markets: Chinese stocks fell the most in four months (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-stocks-plunge-65-after-sovereign-fund-cuts-stakes-in-banks-2015-05-28), with the Shanghai Composite Index down 6.5%. European stock markets were also mostly lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid).

Oil (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid)(CLN5) wobbled around the flatline, while most metals were mostly lower.

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