U.S. index futures rose in pre-market trading on Thursday following the Juneteenth holiday.
As of 6:21 AM, Dow Jones futures (DOWI:DJI) were up 42 points, or 0.11%. S&P 500 futures advanced 0.41%, and Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.63%. The 10-year Treasury yield stood at 4.254%.
In the commodities market, West Texas Intermediate crude for July rose 0.04% to $81.60 per barrel. Brent crude for August increased by 0.21%, nearing $85.25 per barrel. Iron ore traded on the Dalian Exchange climbed 0.36% to $113.56 per metric ton.
On Thursday’s economic agenda, the Commerce Department will release May housing starts data at 8:30 AM. Simultaneously, the Labor Department will publish weekly jobless claims, and the Philadelphia Fed will release its June industrial activity index. Later, at 11:00 AM, the Department of Energy (DoE) will present its weekly petroleum inventory update as of last Friday.
European markets are trending higher, driven by investor expectations regarding upcoming interest rate decisions from the central banks of the UK and Norway. It is expected that Norway’s central bank will keep its interest rate steady at 4.5%. Meanwhile, the Swiss National Bank announced a 0.25 percentage point cut in its key interest rate, now set at 1.25%, according to Reuters forecasts.
The People’s Bank of China is maintaining its key interest rates stable, with the Loan Prime Rates unchanged for the fourth month. Bank President Pan Gongsheng suggested a possible shift towards a short-term rate as a monetary policy reference. Asian markets closed mixed: the Shanghai SE fell 0.42%, Nikkei rose 0.16%, Hang Seng dropped 0.52%, Kospi advanced 0.37%, and ASX 200 remained flat.
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones rose 0.15%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.25%, and the Nasdaq grew 0.16%. Volatility followed the release of mixed economic data, with modest increases in retail sales and a significant jump in industrial production. Investors became optimistic after weak retail sales figures suggested that American households are starting to control their spending – an indication of a slowdown in economic growth that could give the Federal Reserve room to lower interest rates. Among individual stocks, Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) made history, becoming the most valuable company in the U.S.
In the realm of quarterly reports, scheduled to report before the market opens are Aurora Cannabis (NASDAQ:ACB), Accenture (NYSE:ACN), Kroger (NYSE:KR), Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI), Jabil (NYSE:JBL), Winnebago (NYSE:WGO), Silvaco (NASDAQ:SVCO), Commercial Metals Company (NYSE:CMC), Gypsum Management & Supply (NYSE:GMS), Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE:TNP), among others.
After the market closes, reports are expected from Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ:SWBI) and Algoma (NASDAQ:ASTL).