* Yum up in premarket after China sales results
* Costco posts quarterly results
* Futures off: Dow 26 pts, S&P 2.2 pts, Nasdaq 5.75 pts
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK, March 12 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures dipped on Tuesday, as investors appeared set to book some profits after a seven-session winning streak.
* Both the Dow and benchmark S&P index have rallied for seven consecutive sessions, with the Dow setting fresh record highs and leaving the S&P within 10 points of its all-time closing high of 1,565.15 reached on Oct (KOSDAQ: 039200.KQ - news) . 9, 2007.
* But any pullback may still be short-lived, with recent dips having been well contained as investors have used them as a buying opportunity.
* Investors' confidence in equities has grown, leading to a gain of more than 10 percent for the year on the Dow and more than 9 percent for the S&P, helped by signs of improvement in the economy and the Federal Reserve's quantitative easing program.
* The boost in confidence has been reflected in the CBOE Volatility Index, also known as Wall Street's "fear gauge," which dropped 8.2 percent to 11.56 on Monday, its lowest level since February 2007.
* S&P 500 futures fell 2.2 points and were slightly below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones (DJI: ^DJI - news) industrial average futures lost 26 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures shed 5.75 points.
* Retailer Costco Wholesale Corp posted a 39 percent increase in quarterly profit, beating expectations, on increasing sales, membership fees and a tax benefit related to a special cash dividend.
* Yum Brands Inc advanced 5.4 percent to $71.50 in premarket trade after the parent company of KFC reported an unexpected 2 percent rise in February sales at established restaurants in China.
* European shares consolidated near 4-1/2 year highs as a rally in miner Antofagasta (Other OTC: ANFGY - news) was counter-balanced by steep falls in the real estate sector and disappointing UK macro data.
* Asian shares eased but growing confidence in the U.S. economy underpinned risk sentiment.
