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() - The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower opening on Friday, with sentiment reflecting a lack of conviction in the economic recovery despite recent incoming data remaining upbeat. The sovereign debt crisis in Europe continues to be an irritant, with Ireland’s downgrade serving to accentuate the worries. That said, the passage of the tax cut bill by the House and positive tech earnings could cushion some of the weakness emanating from the uncertainty.

After opening Thursday’s session higher amid the release of upbeat economic data, stocks lost ground, receding modestly into negative territory in early trading. An encouraging manufacturing report helped allay the negativity and the major averages recovered immediately thereafter and advanced through the rest of the morning.

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The ECB has just announced a EUR 5bn increase in its subscribed capital, which will almost double the existing amount to a total of EUR 10.76bn. The decision and the size of the increase were correctly anticipated by press leaks in the last few days. Importantly, the decision to hike capital stems from an assessment of capital adequacy conducted in 2009, i.e. before the beginning of the Securities and Markets Program. This means that government bond purchases carried out since May seem not to be the specific reason behind today’s decision. Rather, the ECB links higher capital needs to a generalized increase in the riskiness of its assets due to the heightened volatility in FX, interest rates, gold prices, and credit risk. Moreover, the ECB considers appropriate the move given the considerable growth of the financial system in the last years – we recall that this is the first general capital hike since the ECB inception in 1999. T Read full post…

In a recent interview, Elizabeth Warren, an advisor to the Obama administration slated to head a new federal consumer rights agency, noted that she has received numerous suggestions for providing consistent regulation and guidelines for overseeing consumer credit and lending practices.

Citing inconsistency in advertising credit terms and finance charges, professor Warren recommends standardized food labeling requirements a potential model for clearly communicating the terms and features of consumer credit cards and loans. Consistent labeling would assist consumers with comparing features and avoiding hidden terms that can increase debt.

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– Lew Prince is managing partner of Vintage Vinyl, an independent music store in St. Louis. He is also a member of Business for Shared Prosperity, which has circulated a petition against extending the Bush-era tax cuts. The views expressed are his own. –

As a small business owner for more than 30 years, I have to be reality based.

I budget and make decisions that consider both short- and long-term realities. My company wouldn’t last a week if we kept repeating mistakes.

The Bush tax cuts for the richest Americans were a big mistake. We should let them expire, not repeat the mistake by extending them. It’s an illusion that it will be easier to end them after a two-year extension.

High-end tax cuts haven’t trickled down as job creation. President Bush had the worst job creation record since 1939. The only thing trickling down was economic meltdown, foreclosures, unemployment, business closures and budget cuts.

Contrary to myth, my tax rate doesn’t affect hiring. If I think

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