Dollar Firms, Equities Retreat Before Jobless Claims, LEI, Philly Fed

New 13-month peaks early in the week and now . . .hesitation. Ninety minutes before the opening bell, S&P 500 futures are off 10 points to 1,098 and Dow futures are 66 points lower at 10,338.

With equities taking a dip, other assets considered risky are following suit. WTI Crude is trading 70 cents lower at $78.88 per barrel and Spot Gold is $10.87 lower at $1134.63.

As President Obama warns of accumulating too much debt, he is also tapping into unused portions of the TARP funds, sending mixed messages to the market. Meanwhile, investors are concerned about the US housing market, trade relations with China, and the broad decline of the US dollar.

Still, the dollar is maintaining its safe-haven status and firming against multiple currencies this morning.

BMO’s Sal Guatieri notes that risk aversion is also helping the bond market.

“Treasuries are a bit firmer, buoyed by yesterday’s mention from the President of a possible double-dip recession â€