The Breakfast Briefing: U.S. Futures Point To A Slight Bounce On Wall Street

Ted

FYI:
U.S. stock index futures indicated a slightly higher open on Wall Street Thursday morning.

Around 6:15 a.m. ET, Dow futures indicated a positive open of about 35 points. S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures also pointed to higher implied opens.

Wall Street is seeking to recover from an 800-point plunge over the last two sessions, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing down 494.42 points on Wednesday as investors track fears of an economic recession.

U.S. stock futures rise

• Asian stocks drop, European shares flat

• Oil prices dip

Global stocks wavered as a fresh round of weak economic data raised investors’ concerns about world growth.

In the U.S., futures for the S&P 500 gained 0.4%.

The Stoxx Europe 600 was flat in late morning trade, after suffering its worst performance this year on Wednesday. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei was down 2% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed up 0.3%. Stock markets in China and South Korea were closed on Thursday.

U.K. stocks were a weak spot in the region, with London’s FTSE 100 down 0.5% and the FTSE 250 down 0.4% after a weak reading on the country’s services sector and amid fresh Brexit tensions.

The U.K. services purchasing managers index on Thursday hit a six-month low of 49.5, below the 50 level that marks contraction. The new figures reignited concerns that the economy is in recession, analysts at Capital Economics said in a note, adding that economic performance will remain “well below par” while Brexit negotiations drag on.

Meanwhile, European officials gave a cool response to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s new proposals to break the deadlock over Brexit just weeks ahead of the U.K.’s scheduled exit from the European Union.

Fresh data also added to the gloomy outlook for the broader European economy. The IHS Markit composite purchasing managers index fell to 50.1 in September from 51.9 in August, the lowest reading since June 2013.

Among the biggest gainers in Europe was fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz. Its shares gained 6.4% after the company reported its third-quarter earnings, which showed a 6% rise in net sales with a reduction in markdowns helping operating profits.

The yield on U.S. 10-year Treasurys dropped to 1.577% on Thursday, from 1.594% on Wednesday.

The WSJ Dollar Index, which measures the currency against a basket of its peers, was flat.

Among the biggest gainers in Europe was fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz. Its shares gained 6.6% after the company reported its third-quarter earnings, which showed a 6% rise in net sales with a reduction in markdowns helping operating profits.

In commodities, global oil benchmark Brent crude dropped 0.2% to $57.55 per barrel. Gold dropped 0.1%.

Later Thursday, investors will be watching for data on U.S. services activity in September, as well as August factory orders, for clues about growth in the world’s largest economy.

Regards,
Ted

WSJ:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stocks-slip-on-weak-data-tariff-threat-11570090333

Bloomberg:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-02/asian-stocks-set-to-slide-as-slowdown-fears-grow-markets-wrap?srnd=premium

IBD:
https://www.investors.com/market-trend/stock-market-today/dow-jones-futures-apple-stock-boeing-stock-market-rally-reeling-tesla-deliveries-e-trade/

CNBC::
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/03/us-futures-point-to-slightly-lower-open.html

U.K.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-stocks/ftse-falls-for-fourth-day-after-trade-shock-ted-baker-slumps-idUKKBN1WI0J4

Europe:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-stocks/european-shares-bounce-back-from-trade-shock-as-airbus-jumps-idUSKBN1WI0KK

Asia:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-sink-amid-wall-street-losses-new-us-tariffs-against-eu-2019-10-02/print

Bonds:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/03/us-treasury-yields-lower-amid-trade-turmoil.html

Currencies:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/03/forex-markets-us-jobs-data-in-focus.html

Oil:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/03/oil-markets-global-economy-in-focus.html

Gold:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/03/gold-markets-us-jobs-data-in-focus.html

Cuirrent Futures:
https://finviz.com/futures.ashx
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