The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to initial strength on Wednesday, with stocks likely to see further upside after ending the previous session mostly higher.
The upward momentum on Wall Street comes as traders look ahead to release of quarterly results from AI darling Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) after the close of today’s trading.
Nvidia, which has recently been a major market leader, is up by 0.5 percent in pre-market trading after surging by 4.9 percent on Tuesday.
Early buying interest may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders continue to express concerns about escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia.
A lack of major U.S. economic data may also keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of Nvidia’s results, although comments from several Fed officials may attract attention.
Among individual stocks, shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) are moving sharply lower in pre-market trading after the retailer reported weaker than expected third quarter results and lowered its full-year guidance.
Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio (NYSE:NIO) may also move to the downside after reporting third quarter sales that missed analyst estimates.
On the other hand, shares of Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) may see initial strength after the company announced its intent to spin off a portfolio of NBCUniversal’s cable television networks, including USA Network, CNBC, and MSNBC, into a new publicly traded company.
Stocks moved to the downside early in the session on Tuesday but showed a significant rebound over the course of the trading day. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 climbed well off their early lows and into positive territory, although the narrower Dow remained stuck in the red.
The major averages eventually ended the day mixed. While the Dow fell 120.66 points or 0.3 percent to 43,268.94, the S&P 500 rose 23.36 points or 0.4 percent to 5,916.98 and the Nasdaq jumped 195.66 points or 1.0 percent to 18,987.47.
The early weakness on Wall Street came amid concerns about escalating tensions between the U.S. and Russia over the war in Ukraine.
After President Joe Biden gave Ukraine permission to attack Russian territory using U.S.-made long-range missiles, Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree amending the country’s nuclear doctrine.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the updated doctrine says Russia “reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in the event of aggression with the use of conventional weapons against it or the Republic of Belarus, which creates a critical threat to sovereignty or territorial integrity.”
“Aggression against the Russian Federation by any non-nuclear state with the participation or support of a nuclear state is considered a joint attack,” Peskov added, according to NBC News.
Shortly before the Kremlin updated its nuclear weapons doctrine, Ukraine reportedly used U.S.-made long-range missiles to attack a Russian military facility in the Bryansk border region.
Selling pressure waned shortly after the start of trading, however, with an advance by shares of Nvidia helping lead the turnaround by the Nasdaq.
Retail giant Walmart (NYSE:WMT) also showed a notable move to the upside after reporting better than expected third quarter results and raising its full-year guidance.
Meanwhile, shares of Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW) slumped after the home improvement retailer reported third quarter results that exceeded estimates but forecast a decrease by full-year sales.
Computer hardware stocks extended the substantial rebound seen in the previous session, driving the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 3.3 percent. The index continued to regain ground after hitting a two-month closing low last Friday.
Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI) led the sector higher once again after announcing BDO as its independent auditor and submitting a compliance plan to the Nasdaq.
Gold stocks also saw significant strength amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index jumping by 2.3 percent.
On the other hand, airline stocks moved sharply lower on the day, resulting in a 4.6 percent nosedive by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.