The U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech at a Wall Street Journal conference and the Weekly Jobless Claims report might attract investor attention on Thursday.
Asian shares finished lower, while European shares are trading mostly down.
The initial signs from the U.S. Futures Index point to a lower open for Wall Street.
Further to the intelligence alert on plans of a violent militia to control the U.S. Capitol, the Federal enforcement is on high alert.
As of 7.45 am ET, the Dow futures were down 45.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were declining 10.75 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were sliding 44.50 points.
The U.S. major averages ended Wednesday’s session at their worst levels of the day. The Nasdaq plunged 361.04 points or 2.7 percent to 12,997.75, the S&P 500 slumped 50.57 points or 1.3 percent to 3,819.72 and the Dow fell 121.43 points or 0.4 percent to 31,270.09.
On the economic front, the Jobless Claims for the week will be issued at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for 760K, while it was up 730K in the prior week.
The Labor Department’s Productivity and Costs for the fourth quarter will be released at 8.30 am ET. The nonfarm productivity consensus is for a decline of 4.7 percent, while it was down 4.8 percent in the prior quarter.
The Commerce Department’s Factory Orders for January will be revealed at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is for 2.0 percent, while it was up 1.1 percent in December.
The Energy Information Administration or EIA’s Natural Gas Report for the week will be released at 10.30 am ET. In the prior week, the gas stock was down 338 bcf.
Three-year and 10-year Treasury Note auction will be held at 11.00 am ET. The 30-year Treasury Bond announcement will be at 11.00 am ET.
The Fed Balance Sheet for the week is scheduled at 4.30 pm ET. In the prior week, the level was at $7.590 trillion.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will participate in a ‘What’s up with the Economy?’ panel conversation at a Wall Street Journal Jobs Summit virtual event, with Q&A from the moderator at 12.05 pm ET.
Asian stocks fell on Thursday. Chinese stocks fell the most in over seven months on concerns over high valuations. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index fell 73.41 points, or 2.05 percent, to 3,503.49, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended down 643.63 points, or 2.15 percent, at 29,236.79.
Japanese shares hit one-month low. The Nikkei average slumped 628.99 points, or 2.13 percent, to close at 28,930.11, the lowest since Feb. 5. The broader Topix ended 1.04 percent lower at 1,884.74.
Australian stocks finished lower to snap a three-day winning run. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 57.30 points, or 0.84 percent, to 6,760.70 amid across-the-board selling. The broader All Ordinaries index ended down 67.30 points, or 0.95 percent, at 7,000.60.
European shares are trading mostly lower. Among the major indexes in the region, the German DAX is losing 54.58 points or 0.39 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is declining 49.44 points or 0.74 percent.
The Swiss Market Index is down 38.63 points or 0.37 percent.
The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is down 0.30 percent.
Business News
Futures Point To Lower Open For Wall Street
2021-03-04 13:00:13
