US pre-open: Futures little changed ahead second last day of Q2 trading
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Wednesday 29 Jun 2022
(Sharecast News) - Wall Street futures were little changed prior to the open on Q2's penultimate trading session.
As of 1250 BST, Dow Jones futures were up 0.05%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.16% and 0.15% softer, respectively.
The Dow closed 491.27 points lower on Tuesday as market participants digested news that consumer confidence had hit a 16-month low.
Market participants will be firmly focussed on goings-on across the pond on Wednesday, with Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell set to deliver a speech at the European Central Bank forum at 1400 BST.
Recessionary fears, concerns over a slowing economy, and aggressive rate hikes also continued to weigh on sentiment prior to the open.
AvaTrade's Naeem Aslam said: "Stock futures are trading lower as traders are concerned about the gloomy economic outlook, while central banks are trying their best to bring inflation lower by tightening their monetary policies, which is cutting their growth. Yesterday, we saw the wheels coming out of the bear market rally in the US and in Europe, and the sell-off became a lot more intense for the Dow Jones stock index, which shed nearly 500 points while the Nasdaq index plunged 2.98%.
"As for Powell, after his testimony last week, the focus will be on what he avoided to mention in his speech, not what he said during his testimony. The challenges are similar between the Fed and the BOE or the ECB, but unlike the BOE or ECB, the Fed has left a lot of room to move around if there is any need. But for now, and for today, traders will focus on the strength of the dollar. The currency has once again proved itself that it is the ultimate safe haven among other fiat currencies."
On the macro front, mortgage applications rose 0.7% week-on-week in the seven days ended 24 June, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, as the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances decreased to 5.84% from 5.98%.
Still to come, a final reading of Q1's GDP growth rate will be published at 1330 BST, as will first-quarter PCE data.
In the corporate space, Bed, Bath and Beyond revealed chief executive Mark Tritton will depart the group after reporting a $357.7m first-quarter loss, while General Mills issued disappointing full-year profit guidance.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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