US Stocks Headed For Another Tough Trading Day As S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Plunge; Apple, Chip and Energy Stocks In Focus

The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a sharply lower opening on Tuesday as traders look ahead to imminent earnings season and key economic data, which are mostly back-end loaded this week.

On Monday, stocks retreated amid the ongoing uncertainty over interest rates and the economic outlook. Tech, energy and real estate stocks came in for particular punishment, while material, utility, consumer staple and industrial stocks saw modest strength.

The recent sell-off in tech stocks that followed Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.’s AMD negative pronouncement accelerated on Monday, dragging the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index to a fresh two-year low.

Here’s a peek into index futures trading:

In premarket trading on Tuesday, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF TrustSPY pulled back 0.88% to $356.84 and Invesco QQQ TrustQQQ fell 0.94% to $263.91, according to Benzinga Pro data.

On the economic front, Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester are scheduled to make public appearances at 11:30 a.m. EDT and 12 p.m. EDT, respectively. Both Fed officials are members of the Federal Open Market Committee.

The remainder of the trading week will see the release of key catalysts, including the minutes of the September FOMC meeting, consumer and producer price inflation reports, retail sales data and a consumer sentiment reading.

See also: Investor Fear Increases Ahead Of Third-Quarter Earnings Season

Stocks In Focus

• Semiconductor stocks and computer manufacturers such as Dell Technologies, Inc. DELL, Apple, Inc. AAPL and HP, Inc. HPQ declined in premarket following Gartner’s report on third-quarter PC shipments, which saw nearly 20% year-over-year decline.
• Energy stocks could be in focus following oil’s retreat.

Large-Cap Premarket Movers:

• Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited TSM fell over 3.5%, pressured by the U.S. curbs on China chip exports.
• Mining giant BHP Group BHP was down sharply at 2.75%.
• Amgen, Inc. AMGN was up 2%.

Crude, Global Equity Markets:

WTI-grade crude oil was declining for a second straight session as demand concerns weigh down. The black gold had advanced last week amid the OPEC+ production cuts.

The major Asian markets ended Tuesday’s session mostly lower, with the exception of the Chinese and New Zealand markets, while European stocks declined steeply in early trading.