U.S. index futures fell in pre-market trading on Wednesday, impacted by recent financial results from tech giants Tesla and Alphabet. Investors are watching for potential Federal Reserve interest rate changes and market recovery, focusing on upcoming earnings from companies like AT&T, General Dynamics, Ford, and IBM.
At 4:55 AM, Dow Jones futures (DOWI:DJI) dropped 180 points, or 0.44%. S&P 500 futures lost 0.65%, and Nasdaq-100 futures fell 0.90%. The 10-year Treasury yield was at 4.236%.
In commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude for September rose 0.58% to $77.41 per barrel. Brent crude for September climbed 0.60% to around $81.50 per barrel. Oil prices increased after three consecutive declines, driven by reduced U.S. oil inventories and Canadian wildfires affecting supply.
On Wednesday’s economic calendar, S&P Global will release preliminary July PMI readings for manufacturing and services at 9:45 AM. At 10 AM, the U.S. Commerce Department will report June new home sales. Additionally, at 10:30 AM, the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) will present updated oil inventory data through last Friday.
Asia-Pacific markets showed negative performances. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.11% to close at 39,154.85. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 0.94% to 17,304.46. China’s Shanghai Composite declined 0.46% to 2,901.95. South Korea’s Kospi decreased 0.56% to 2,758.71, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 remained nearly flat with a slight 0.09% dip to 7,963.70.
Japan saw solid growth with the July composite PMI at 52.6, up from June’s 49.7. In Australia, private sector activity slowed with the composite PMI dropping to 50.2, according to Juno Bank. Among individual stocks, China’s Li Auto fell 4%, while Nio and Xpeng lost over 5%. Taiwan’s Foxconn announced a $138 million investment in China. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics (KOSPI:005930) dropped 2.26% due to a worker strike.
European markets are down, pressured by household goods and tech sectors. Investors await financial results from major companies and economic data from the UK and Eurozone flash PMIs, as well as German consumer confidence. Eurozone business activity growth stalled this month, with the composite PMI falling to 50.1 due to a manufacturing recession. Recovery expectations decreased, reflecting continued slowdown.
Among individual stocks, BNP Paribas (EU:BNP) exceeded expectations with a 21% net profit increase, reaching $3.69 billion, driven by higher equity sales. However, an 11% drop in net interest income and weak domestic retail performance led to a 2.7% decline in its shares.
LVMH (EU:MC) shares fell around 5% after second-quarter sales growth missed expectations, increasing only 1% to $22.76 billion. The slowdown affected other luxury stocks, like Hermes (EU:RMS) and Kering (EU:KER). Bloomberg reports that LVMH’s Tag Heuer is in talks to become the new official timekeeper of Formula 1, replacing Rolex. This significant sponsorship could strengthen LVMH’s presence in the luxury watch market.
U.S. stocks closed slightly lower on Tuesday, reflecting traders’ hesitation ahead of upcoming financial releases and inflation data due on Friday, which could influence future Federal Reserve decisions. The Dow Jones fell 0.14%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.16%, and the Nasdaq decreased 0.06%. Recent volatility has created market uncertainty, with investors awaiting reports from Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) after the close.
Wednesday’s pre-market earnings reports include AT&T (NYSE:T), Thermo Fisher (NYSE:TMO), GE Vernova (NYSE:GEV), General Dynamics (NYSE:GD), Vertiv Holdings (NYSE:VRT), Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW), Amphenol (NYSE:APH), NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE), Tenet Health (NYSE:THC), Lennox International (NYSE:LII), and more.
Post-market numbers are expected from Ford Motor (NYSE:F), IBM (NYSE:IBM), Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG), ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW), Newmont (NYSE:NEM), Whirlpool (NYSE:WHR), KLA Corporation (NASDAQ:KLAC), Celestica (NYSE:CLS), Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS), Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX), and others.