U.S. stock futures tracked higher on Wednesday, as investors continued to focus on debt-ceiling talks, while looking ahead to earnings from Target Corp. and housing starts data.
How are stock-index futures trading?
-
S&P 500 futures
ES00,
+0.28%
rose 10.5 points, or 0.2%, to 4,133.50 -
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures
YM00,
+0.32%
gained 92 points, or 0.2%, to 33,154 -
Nasdaq-100 futures
NQ00,
+0.14%
rose 22.75 points, or 0.1%, to 13,507.25
On Tuesday, the Dow industrials
DJIA,
-1.01%
finished 336.46 points, or 0.1%, lower at 33,012.14, and traded negative year-to-date for the first time since May 4. The S&P 500
SPX,
-0.64%
closed 26.38 points lower, or 0.6%, to 4,109.90, and the Nasdaq Composite
COMP,
-0.18%
lost 22.16 points, or 0.2%, to 12,343.05.
Read: Nasdaq is leading the Dow by the widest margin since 1991 as blue-chip gauge erases 2023 gain. Is that a good sign?
What’s driving markets?
Futures were indicated something of a bounce after Tuesday’s stock decline, following mixed economic data and some angst over debt-ceiling talks.
The latest round of discussions over the debt-ceiling ended just ahead of the market close on Tuesday. Perhaps providing some encouragement for investors, the Biden White House referred to those talks as “productive and direct,” while House Speaker Kevin McCarthy referred to the meeting as “a little more productive.”
The California Republican also said a deal by the end of the week was possible. President Joe Biden has cut short an Asian trip and will return to the U.S. on Sunday to focus on the debt-ceiling crisis.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that June 1 could be the date when the U.S. may become unable to pay its bills in the absence of a debt-ceiling increase. Concerns about potential impact on markets of a technical U.S. default has helped keep the S&P 500 index confined to a tight range in recent months.
“Regional banking fears, tough Fed talk, and rhetoric over the debt ceiling from the politicians have all leaned on stocks over the past week or so. The averages have not moved out of their trading ranges, thus suggesting that the market is likely to trade sideways as the earnings season comes to an end and the focus shifts toward the June 13-14 FOMC [Federal Open Market Committee] meeting,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital, in a note to clients.
Treasury yields
TMUBMUSD10Y,
3.528%
TMUBMUSD02Y,
4.084%
were holding mostly steady, as investors waited more economic data — housing starts and building permits for April at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.
Investors will also get more insight on the state of consumers, with big retailers Target Corp.
TGT,
-1.62%
and TJX Cos.
TJX,
-1.30%
due to report results ahead of the open. Earnings from Cisco Systems Inc.
CSCO,
-0.38%,
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc.
TTWO,
-0.82%
and Synopsys Inc.
SNPS,
+0.50%
are expected after the market close.
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