U.S. Stocks May See Initial Weakness On Disappointing Amazon Results

After ending the previous session mostly higher, stocks may move back to the downside in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a lower open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by 79 points.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures have shown an even more substantial move to the downside, tumbling by 1.1 percent.

A steep drop from Amazon (AMZN) is likely to weigh on the tech sector, with the online retail giant plunging by 7 percent in pre-market trading.

The downward momentum for Amazon comes after the company reported second quarter earnings that beat expectations, but its revenues missed estimates for the first time since the third quarter of 2018.

On the other hand, Procter & Gamble (PG) may move to the upside after reporting better than expected fiscal fourth quarter results, although the consumer products giant also warned about the impact of higher input costs.

Shares of Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX) could also see initial strength after the energy giants reported quarterly results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

In U.S. economic news, the Commerce Department released a report unexpectedly showing a slight increase in personal income in the month of June.

The report showed personal income inched up by 0.1 percent in June after tumbling by a revised 2.2 percent in May.

The uptick surprised economists, who had expected personal income to dip by 0.3 percent compared to the 2.0 percent slump originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said personal spending jumped by 1.0 percent in June after edging down by a revised 0.1 percent in May.

Economists had expected personal spending to increase by 0.7 percent compared to the unchanged reading originally reported for the previous month.

The report also showed the annual rate of core consumer price growth crept up to 3.5 percent in June from 3.4 percent in May.

Just after the start of trading, MNI Indicators is scheduled to release its report on Chicago-area business activity in the month of July. The Chicago business barometer is expected to come in unchanged at 66.1, with a reading above 50 indicating growth.

The University of Michigan is also due to release its revised reading on consumer sentiment in the month of July. The consumer sentiment index is expected to be unrevised at 80.8.

Following the mixed performance seen on Wednesday, stocks moved mostly higher during trading on Thursday. With the upward move on the day, the Dow and the S&P 500 set new record intraday highs.

The major averages pulled back off their best levels in afternoon trading but managed to remain positive. The Dow climbed 153.60 points or 0.4 percent to 35,084.53, the Nasdaq inched up 15.68 points or 0.1 percent to 14,778.26 and the S&P 500 rose 18.51 points or 0.4 percent to 4,419.15.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.8 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.4 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has dipped by 0.2 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both down by 0.8 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slipping $0.11 to $73.51 a barrel after jumping $1.23 to $73.62 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after spiking $31.20 to $1,835.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are falling $4.90 to $1,830.90 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 109.68 yen versus the 109.48 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1884 compared to yesterday’s $1.1887.