US STOCKS-Futures flat as trade moves offer mixed signals

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* Futures: Dow up 0.10%, S&P 500 up 0.01%, Nasdaq down 0.05%

By Uday Sampath Kumar

Sept 11 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were largely

flat on Wednesday as easing trade tensions with China did little

to sway investors, who are refraining from making heavy bets

ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates next

week.

Earlier in the day, China's finance ministry said 16 types

of U.S. goods would be exempted from additional retaliatory

tariffs, ahead of a planned meeting between trade negotiators

from the two countries. While the move is perceived as a friendly gesture to thaw

trade relations with the United States, analysts are far from

convinced that it is a turning point in a trade war that has

hurt the global economy.

"The exemption could be seen as a gesture of sincerity

towards the US ahead of negotiations in October, but is probably

more a means of supporting the (Chinese) economy," Iris Pang, a

Greater China economist with ING, wrote in a note.

On Tuesday, a senior White House adviser tempered down

expectations for the trade talks, urging investors to be patient

about resolving the dispute between the world's two largest

economies. Markets are now looking for stimulus measures from central

banks to stem a global slowdown, with the Fed and the European

Central Bank expected to cut interest rates at their policy

meetings over the next two weeks.

With major decisions still around the corner, trading in

U.S. markets has been subdued this week. Investors have been

readjusting their portfolios, shifting profits from

outperforming sectors such as technology to those that have

underperformed like energy and financials.

Shares of Micron Technology Inc MU.O rose nearly 2%

premarket after Longbow Research upgraded its rating on the

stock to "buy". Shares of other chipmakers also ticked higher in

thin volumes. Apple Inc AAPL.O was marginally higher after the company

unveiled its latest iPhones on Tuesday and rolled out a

streaming TV service at a price that undercut Disney DIS.N and

Netflix NFLX.O . At 7:05 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 26 points, or

0.1%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 0.25 points, or 0.01% and

Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were down 3.75 points, or 0.05%.

Also on the radar is a report from the Labor Department, due

at 8:30 a.m. ET, which is expected to show producer prices for

final demand in August remained unchanged at 1.7%.