A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Jobless Claims Data

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade after the Nasdaq index tumbled more than 350 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings reports from Kroger Co KR, Costco Wholesale Corporation COST, and Broadcom Inc AVGO.

The Challenger job-cut report for February is scheduled for release at 7:30 a.m. ET, while data on initial jobless claims, nonfarm productivity and unit labour costs will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on factory orders for January will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 140 points to 31,096.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 21.50 points at 3,795.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index fell 70 points to 12,611.75.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 28,759,720 with around 518,340 deaths. India reported a total of at least 11,156,920 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 10,718,630 cases.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.4% to trade at $63.80 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.6% to trade at $60.94 a barrel. US crude oil supplies climbed 21.563 million barrels last week, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday. The Energy Information Administration’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 rose 0.1% and STOXX Europe 600 Index fell 0.6%. The French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.1%, German DAX 30 dropped 0.4% while London's FTSE 100 fell 0.7%. The Eurozone construction PMI rose to 45.0 in February from 44.1 in the earlier month. The IHS Markit Germany construction PMI declined to 41 in February from 46.6 in January, while France construction PMI increased to 44 in February from 39.5.

Asian markets traded lower today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.13%, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 2.05% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 2.15%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.8%, while India’s BSE Sensex fell 1.3%. Japan’s consumer confidence index rose to 33.8 in February. Retail sales in Australia increased 0.5% month-over-month in January, while trade surplus widened to AUD 10.14 billion in January.

Broker Recommendation

KeyBanc maintained Micron Technology, Inc. MU with an Overweight and raised the price target from $121 to $130.

Micron shares fell 0.8% to $88.38 in pre-market trading.

Check out other major ratings here

Breaking News

• Yext, Inc. YEXT reported better-than-expected results for its fourth quarter, but issued weak sales guidance for Q1 and FY22. Yext shares fell 17.8% to $13.60 in pre-market trading.
• Pfizer PFE said it received FDA approval for LORBRENA as first-line treatment for ALK-positive metastatic lung cancer.
• Marvell Technology Group Ltd. MRVL reported in-line earnings for its fourth quarter, while sales exceeded estimates.
• German registrations of Tesla Inc TSLA vehicles saw a 78% year-over-year surge as of January, according to data released by Germany’s federal motor transport authority, Das Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt.