US pre-open: Futures point to losses as stimulus talks and vaccine news remain in focus
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Friday 18 Sep 2020
(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were mixed ahead of the bell on Friday as stimulus talks and vaccination news took centre stage.
As of 1220 BST, Dow Jones futures were down 0.09%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.08% and 0.44% firmer, respectively.
The Dow closed 130.40 points lower on Thursday as another heavy tech-sell off snapped a four-day winning streak for the blue-chip index.
As fas as Friday was concerned, focus will be spread across both stimulus and vaccine news.
Both Republicans and Democrats were still at an impasse in negotiations regarding how much aid to provide the American people following a previous $2trn package.
Donald Trump said he wasn't aversed to "the larger numbers", urging lawmakers to go for a more hefty stimulus package.
In terms of a Covid-19 vaccine, US health officials warned that any vaccinations distributed in 2020 would be in limited quantities and would not be widely distributed for another six to nine months.
Oanda's Craig Erlam said: "This week hasn't quite lived up to expectations and investors are getting a little nervous as we head into the final few months of the year.
"While the end of the year could look very different - a Covid vaccine, political clarity and fiscal support - the next few weeks could be challenging. Congress is running out of time and an awful lot of compromise is required to get anything over the line. In the absence of a deal, it's not hard to envisage a continuation of the tech-led correction in the markets."
On the macro front, a preliminary reading of the University of Michigan's September consumer sentiment index will be published at 1500 BST, as will the Conference Board's leading index for August.
No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Friday.
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