Credit: Michael Nagle / Bloomberg via Getty Images
Stock futures were little changed Thursday after major indexes advanced yesterday to snap three-session losing streaks. Meanwhile, bitcoin, oil prices, and Treasury yields rose.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed 0.2% lower in recent trading, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were near flat.
Shares of Dow component Walmart (WMT) shares fell 5% before the bell after it reported soft third-quarter guidance.
On Wednesday, the benchmark S&P 500, blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average, and tech-focused Nasdaq Composite finished up roughly 0.2% apiece, and bond yields fell, after the Treasury Department announced it would double its buyback of longer-term notes to increase liquidity.
The 10-year Treasury yield, which influences interest rates on a variety of consumer loans including mortgages, was above 4.67% in recent trading, up more than two basis points from Wednesday’s close. Bond yields sank yesterday after the Treasury Department said it would “at least double” its buyback of longer-term notes, effective Sept. 9 through Nov. 4. Bond yields rise as prices fall.
Bitcoin traded around $71,600, its highest intraday level since early June and extending yesterday’s gains following the Treasury Department’s bond-market intervention. Crypto-tied stocks MARA Holdings (MARA), Strategy (MSTR), Coinbase Global (COIN), and Robinhood Markets (HOOD) jumped before the bell following sharp advances Wednesday.
Crude oil prices rose after President Donald Trump threatened “economic D-Day” on Iran as talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping remain stalled. WTI futures, the U.S. benchmark, gained 2.5% to about $88 a barrel, while Brent futures, the international benchmark, advanced 2.3% to $93.75.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of foreign currencies, slipped 0.2% to 98.61. Gold futures were little changed around $4,540 an ounce.
Shares of the Magnificent Seven mega-cap tech firms were mixed and little changed after all but Nvidia (NVDA) closed higher yesterday. Tesla (TSLA), which led the septet’s gains at more than 4% Wednesday, pointed down less than 1% before the bell.
Elsewhere, shares of Moderna (MRNA) pulled back 11% premarket after skyrocketing more than 175% yesterday to easily pace the S&P 500 after it announced positive results from a late-stage trial of an experimental mRNA-based cancer vaccine. Those of its partner, Merck (MRK), slipped 1.5% after jumping 13% to lead the Dow yesterday.
Deere & Co. (DE) and Advance Auto Parts (AAP) were set to report results before the bell. U.S.-listed shares of Chinese firms NetEase (NTES) and Alibaba Group Holdings (BABA) declined 4% and 1%, respectively, after they issued quarterly results.
