US STOCKS-Wall St futures subdued with focus on GDP data

By Sruthi Shankar and Shashwat Chauhan

Dec 23 (Reuters) - Wall Street futures were muted on Tuesday as investors awaited the year's final batch of key economic data that could reshape expectations for potential interest rate cuts next year.

A rebound in technology stocks and a cooler-than-expected November inflation report have fueled U.S. stocks in the past three sessions, bringing the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX within the 0.5% of its December 11 record close.

The preliminary U.S. GDP data, delayed by a government shutdown, is due at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Commerce Department's data is likely to show the U.S. economy grew at a brisk 3.3% annualized rate in the third quarter, driven by solid consumer spending and business investment.

It is also likely to confirm what economists call a K-shaped economy, in which higher-income households are doing well, while middle- and lower-income are barely staying afloat.

"The highly-lagged nature of the report will likely dampen some of its impact. Most Q3 monthly data is already available, and we have already begun to receive October data," TD Securities analysts said in a note.

Consumer confidence data for December is also due later in the day.

Traders are pricing in at least two 25-basis-point interest rate cuts next year, according to LSEG data, while assigning an 18% chance of the first reduction coming as early as January.

At 07:16 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis YMcv1 were down 32 points, or 0.07%, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were down 3 points, or 0.04%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were down 12.25 points, or 0.05%.

All the three main indexes are set for their third straight yearly gain. The S&P 500 .SPX and the Dow .DJI are also on track to rise for the eighth consecutive month.

Recent gains in U.S. stocks have spurred hopes of a "Santa Claus rally", a seasonal phenomenon in which the S&P 500 posts gains in the last five trading days of the year and the first two trading days in January, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac.

This year, that period starts on Wednesday and runs through January 5.

The CBOE Volatility index .VIX, also known as Wall Street's fear gauge, held near a one-year low at 14.14 points.

Despite the recent volatility, communication services .SPLRCL and information technology .SPLRCT, which houses tech giants, including Nvidia NVDA.O and Alphabet GOOGL.O, are on pace to become the best performing S&P 500 sectors this year.

Trading volumes were light and were likely to thin out further as the holiday approaches. U.S. stock markets will close at 1 p.m. ET (1800 GMT) on Wednesday and remain shut on Thursday for Christmas.

U.S.-listed shares of precious metal miners extended their recent gains in premarket trading, after gold XAU= and silver XAG= prices surged to all-time highs against a weakening dollar and as geopolitical tensions buoyed safe-haven demand.

The Global X Silver Miners ETF SIL.P gained 1.4%, while top gold miner Newmont NEM.N was up 1.1%.

U.S. military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls HII.N jumped 5.1% after President Donald Trump announced plans for a new "Trump class" of battleships, which he said would be larger, faster and "100 times more powerful" than any previously built.