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U.S. stock futures move lower hours ahead of the opening clock Wednesday as Wall Street awaits earnings reports from both Home Depot and Macy’s.
| Ticker | Safety | Last | Alter | Alter% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ek: DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGE | 31521.69 | +27.37 | + 0.09% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 3876.5 | -30.21 | -0.77% |
| I: COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITION INDEX | 13533.048339 | -341.41 | -2.46% |
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell 0.8% to 3,876.50, extending its losses to a fifth consecutive day. The benchmark index was roughly evenly divided between winners and losers, but technology stocks and companies that rely on consumer spending accounted for the bulk of sales. Apple was down 3%, Microsoft was down 2.7%, Tesla was down 8.5% and Amazon was down 2.1%.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.1% to 31.521.69. The Nasdaq lost 2.5% to 13,533.05. The Russell 2000 Index of Smaller Companies declined 0.7% to 2,251.07.
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Stocks began to drop some of their gains last week after a strong start to February, as rising interest rates and the inflation potential along the way dampened some of Wall Street’s enthusiasm, although the major stock indices are still at their everyday highlights remain.
“Equity investors are finally paying attention to the bond market,” said Mike Zigmont, director of trading and research at Harvest Volatility Management. “With returns rising, there is a lot of unrest in the equity space.”
The US stock market is in a positive area hours before the opening clock on Wednesday, as Wall Street is waiting for earnings reports from Home Depot and Macy’s. (Courtney Crow / New York Stock Exchange via AP)
Investors remain focused on the future of global economies hit hard by COVID-19 and the potential for more stimulus to fix it. The U.S. House of Representatives is likely to vote on President Joe Biden’s proposed stimulus package by the end of the week. That would include $ 1,400 checks to most Americans, additional payments for children and billions of dollars in aid to state and local governments, as well as additional aid to businesses affected by the pandemic.
But the sheer amount of stimulus being pumped into the economy has left some investors waiting and reviving the worries about inflation that have been virtually non-existent for more than a decade. Yields on US Treasury bonds and notes have risen over the past few weeks as investors bet that the recovery will bring more inflation.
“There are some risks out there,” said Gary Schlossberg, global strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute. “The problem is whether we’re just normalizing back to where we were before the pandemic, or we’re talking about a sea change.”
Technical stocks have made huge profits throughout the pandemic, as investors are betting that consumers will spend more time at home, increasingly relying on mobile devices, computers, video streaming and other technological products and services.
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Meanwhile, Asian markets were mixed on Tuesday after selling shares in technology companies on Wall Street.
With Tokyo closing for a national holiday, South Korean Kospi slipped nearly 0.2% to 3,074.76. Australia’s S & P / ASX 200 gained 0.9% to 6,839.20. Hang Seng in Hong Kong rose 1.0% to 30,618.85, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.5% to 3,623.99.
“Fortunately, today there is more optimism than fear for society in general, with vaccinations showing scientific results on the ground confirming the effectiveness and efficiency of the transfer, which will soon get the world started again,” said Stephen Innes, chief strategist for world markets, said at Axi.
Although the world economy is plagued by the coronavirus pandemic, the use of COVID-19 vaccines raises hopes for recovery.
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In energy trading, U.S. reference crude rose 76 cents to $ 62.46 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It hit $ 2.44 to $ 61.70 a barrel on Monday. International standard Brent crude rose $ 1.14 to $ 66.38 a barrel.
In currency trading, the US dollar rose to 105.09 Japanese yen from 105.08 yen. The euro cost $ 1.2167, compared to $ 1.2157.
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AP business writers Damian J. Troise and Alex Veiga contributed.