A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Mixed; Inflation Data In Focus

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mixed in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones tumbled 150 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Signet Jewelers Ltd. SIG, Chewy Inc CHWY and Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. PLAY.

The Consumer Price Index for May is scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. Analysts expect consumer prices rising a monthly 0.4% in May following a 0.8% increase in the previous month. Data on initial jobless claims for the recent week will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the U.S. Treasury statement for May will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 25 points to 34,462.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 0.25 points at 4,218.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index dropped 30 points to 13,784.25.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 33,414,110 with around 598,760 deaths. India reported a total of at least 29,182,530 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 17,122,870 cases.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.5% to trade at $71.88 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.5% to trade at $69.63 a barrel. US crude oil inventories dropped 5.2 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday. The EIA’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today. The Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.1% and STOXX Europe 600 Index slipped 0.1%. The French CAC 40 Index fell 0.2%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.3% while German DAX 30 dropped 0.3%. French industrial production slipped 0.1% in April following a revised 1.0% rise in March, while payroll employment in the private sector increased 0.5% to 19.51 million in the first quarter. Italy's industrial production rose 1.8% in April.

Asian markets traded mostly higher today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.34%, while China’s Shanghai Composite gained 0.54%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.01%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% and India’s BSE Sensex climbed 0.6%. Australian new home sales surged 15.2% to 5,090 units in May, while producer prices in Japan increased 4.9% annually in May.

Broker Recommendation

Telsey Advisory Group maintained RH RH with an Outperform and raised the price target from $675 to $725.

RH shares rose 6.3% to $650.00 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• GameStop Corp. GME reported a narrower-than-expected loss for its first quarter, while sales also exceeded estimates. GameStop also named Matt Furlong as its new CEO, while Mike Recupero was named as the company’s CFO. The company suspended its guidance going forward. GameStop also disclosed that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the retail trading frenzy.
• RH RH reported stronger-than-expected results for its first quarter and boosted its FY21 sales forecast.
• Pfizer Inc. PFE and its German partner BioNTech SE BNTX said they plan to provide 500 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to the U.S. government for donation to the "poorest nations."
• Oxford Industries Inc OXM reported upbeat results for its first quarter and issued strong Q2 forecast. The company also boosted its FY21 sales guidance.

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