U.S. Stock Futures Edge Higher; GDP Report In Focus

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones dropped around 500 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from General Mills, Inc. GIS, McCormick & Company, Incorporated MKC and Paychex, Inc. PAYX.

Gross Domestic Product report for the first quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The third estimate for Q1 GDP, at minus 1.4%, is likely to show little change versus the second estimate of minus 1.5%. Analysts expect personal consumption expenditures to be unrevised at a 3.1% growth rate. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester is set to speak at 6:30 a.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will speak at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Check out this: McCormick, General Mills And 3 Stocks To Watch Heading Into Wednesday

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 40 points to 30,973.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 3.25 points to 3,828.75. Futures for the Nasdaq index rose 7 points to 11,681.25.

Oil prices traded slightly lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.2% to trade at $113.61 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.1% to trade at $111.62 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories in the U.S. is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET. Stocks of crude oil in the US dropped by 3.799 million barrels in the week ended June 24th, 2022, the API said.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 89,030,720 with around 1,041,350 deaths. India reported a total of at least 43,436,430 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 32,207,080 cases.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index dropped 0.8%, London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.5% while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index fell 1.1%. The French CAC 40 Index fell 0.6%, while German DAX dropped 1.2%. Retail sales in Spain rose by 1.4% year-over-year in May compared to revised 1.6% increase in the prior month, while annual inflation rate increased to 10.2% in June from 8.7% in May. Loans to households in the Eurozone increased 4.6% year-over-year in May.

Asian markets traded mostly lower today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.91%, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 1.4% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dipped 1.88%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.9%, while India’s S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.1%. The consumer confidence index in Japan declined to an 18-month low level of 32.1 in June, while retail sales rose by 3.6% year-over-year in May. Retail sales in Australia rose by 0.9% from a month ago to another record level of AUD 34.23 billion for May.

Broker Recommendation

Deutsche Bank downgraded Crown Castle International Corp. CCI from Buy to Hold and lowered the price target from $204 to $183.

Crown Castle Intl shares fell 2.8% to close at $168.59 on Tuesday.

Check out this: US GDP And Other Macro Issues For Wednesday

Breaking News

• Tesla Inc TSLA has laid off 200 salaried and contract workers from its Autopilot team in California, Bloomberg News reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
• AeroVironment, Inc. AVAV reported weaker-than-expected results for its fourth quarter and issued weak FY23 earnings guidance.
• Progress Software Corporation PRGS reported second-quarter revenue growth of 21% year-over-year to $148.7 million, +24% on a constant currency basis. Adjusted revenue was $150.9 million (+17% Y/Y) and +19% Y/Y on a constant currency basis, beating the consensus of $146.93 million.
• 89bio, Inc. ETNB reported a proposed $75 million underwritten public offering.

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