Following the sell-off seen in the previous session, stocks are likely to move back to the upside in early trading on Wednesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 223 points.
Bargain hunting may contribute to initial strength on Wall Street, as some traders look to pick up stocks at relatively reduced levels.
The steep drop seen on Tuesday dragged the Nasdaq down to its lowest closing level in over a year, while the Dow and the S&P 500 tumbled to one-month closing lows.
A positive reaction to the latest earnings news may also generate buying interest, with shares of Microsoft (MSFT) moving sharply higher in pre-market trading after the software giant reported better than expected quarterly results and provided upbeat guidance.
Credit card giant Visa (V) is also likely to move to the upside after reporting first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.
On the other hand, shares of Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL) may come under pressure after the company reported weaker than expected first quarter results.
Shortly after the start of trading, the National Association of Realtors is scheduled to release its report on pending home sales in the month of March. Pending home sales are expected to slump by 1.6 percent in March after plunging by 4.1 percent in February.
After recovering from an early sell-off on Monday, stocks showed a substantial move back to the downside during trading on Tuesday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way lower, plunging to its lowest closing level in over a year, while the Dow and the S&P 500 tumbled to one-month closing lows.
The major averages fell to new lows for the day going into the close of trading. The Dow dove 809.28 points or 2.4 percent to 33,240.19, the Nasdaq plummeted 514.11 points or 4 percent to 12,490.74 and the S&P 500 slumped 120.92 points or 2.8 percent to 4,175.20.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Wednesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index slumped by 1.2 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index surged by 2.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index has advanced by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index are up by 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slipping $0.50 to $101.20 a barrel after surging $3.16 to $101.70 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $1,904.60, up $0.50 compared to the previous session’s close of $1,904.10. On Tuesday, gold climbed $8.10.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 128.08 yen compared to the 127.23 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0563 compared to yesterday’s $1.0638.
Business News
U.S. Stocks May Move Back To The Upside In Early Trading
2022-04-27 12:43:02
