By Victor Reklaitis, MarketWatch
Apple earnings on deck after the closing bell
U.S. stock-index futures on Thursday were little changed as a
new month kicked off, with gains for eBay and chip maker Qorvo
offset by drops for PayPal and other names.
Investors are taking in a raft of corporate earnings, and Apple
is scheduled to report financial results after the closing
bell.
What are the main benchmarks doing?
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gave up 41 points, or 0.2%,
to 26,095, while S&P 500 futures edged up by 0.95 point, or
less than 0.1%, to 2,826.75. Nasdaq-100 futures edged down by 7
points, or 0.1%, to 6,955.50.
On Wednesday, the Dow rose by 72.50 points, or 0.3%
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dow-set-to-stabilize-after-shedding-540-points-in-2-days-2018-01-31),
while the S&P and Nasdaq Composite inched higher. The moves
came as the Federal Reserve kept a key interest rate steady but
signaled it's on course to hike rates
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fed-takes-step-toward-rate-hike-as-baton-set-to-pass-to-powell-2018-01-31)
at its meeting next month.
The three equity gauges stand less than 2% below last Friday's
record closes after declining on Monday and Tuesday. They are up
between 24% and 31% over the last 12 months, boosted by an
expanding U.S. economy and growth in corporate profits. For
January, the Dow gained 5.8%; the S&P, 5.6%; and the Nasdaq,
7.4%.
Check out:Here's how the Dow, S&P 500 tend to perform after
a rip-roaring January
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-how-the-dow-sp-500-tend-to-perform-after-a-rip-roaring-january-2018-01-31)
What are strategists saying?
"The Federal Reserve has given us a clear message that, barring
some sort of collapse in sentiment over the next few weeks, March
is good to go to lift the fed funds rate," said Chris Weston, chief
market strategist at IG.
"The narrative perhaps even throws weight to the camp that we
would see hikes in the August, September and December meetings,
too," he said in a note.
Which stocks look like key movers?
The stocks of eBay Inc.(EBAY) and Qorvo Inc.(QRVO) were both up
12% in premarket trading, making them the S&P 500's biggest
gainers.
Online auctioneer eBay late Wednesday said it plans to take over
crucial payments-processing duties
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ebay-breaks-up-with-paypal-again-stock-soars-as-paypal-shares-dive-2018-01-31)
from PayPal Holdings Inc.(PYPL) as it posted quarterly earnings.
PayPal's stock fell 8% premarket in the wake of that announcement
for the S&P's largest drop, even as the payments company posted
quarterly profit that beat forecasts
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/paypal-stock-falls-after-fourth-quarter-earnings-2018-01-31).
Qorvo was jumping after posting better-than-expected quarterly
results
(https://www.barrons.com/articles/qorvo-stock-already-reflects-weak-apple-results-says-drexel-1517437350)
late Wednesday. The company, an Apple supplier, was created by the
merger of TriQuint Semiconductor and RF Micro Devices.
Facebook Inc.'s stock (FB) was 2% higher ahead of the open,
after the social media giant late Wednesday reported double-digit
advertising price growth
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebook-earnings-stock-touches-record-after-massive-ad-price-increase-2018-01-31)
amid massive changes to its core product. Shares initially dropped
as the company's release revealed a drop in usage of its
platform.
Check out:Facebook's 'powerful' ad business means it's time to
buy -- analysts react to earnings
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/facebooks-powerful-ad-business-means-its-time-to-buy-analysts-react-to-earnings-2018-02-01)
Apple Inc. shares (AAPL) were little changed premarket ahead of
the tech giant's report after the closing bell.
See:The $1,000 iPhone X remains the story as Apple's earnings
arrive
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/apple-earnings-forget-taxes-and-batteries-the-1000-iphone-x-remains-the-story-2018-01-26)
Microsoft Corp.'s stock (MSFT) was down less than 1% premarket
after the software heavyweight posted better-than-expected earnings
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/shares-of-microsoft-slide-as-software-giant-reports-a-quarterly-loss-on-tax-cuts-2018-01-31).
First Take:Microsoft earnings show Nadella is blazing the right
path
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/microsoft-earnings-show-nadella-is-blazing-the-right-path-2018-01-31)
What could help drive markets?
As traders wait for the key monthly U.S. jobs report due Friday,
they will get plenty of other economic data.
A reading on weekly jobless claims is slated to hit at 8:30 a.m.
Eastern Time, with economists polled by MarketWatch forecasting
240,000 claims. A release on fourth-quarter productivity and labor
costs is due at that time as well, with economists expecting growth
of 0.2% and 1.3%, respectively.
At 9:45 a.m. Eastern, investors are slated to get a Markit
report on January manufacturing, then an ISM reading on that same
topic is due at 10 a.m. Eastern. A December release on construction
spending is due at 10 a.m. Eastern, too.
Reports on U.S. auto sales for January are expected to roll in
throughout the session.
Check out:MarketWatch's Economic Calendar
(http://www.marketwatch.com/economy-politics/calendars/economic)
On the Federal Reserve front, San Francisco Fed President John
Williams is due to give a speech at The City Club in San Francisco
at 3:30 p.m. Eastern.
What are other assets doing?
European stocks traded higher
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-break-3-day-losing-run-after-solid-finance-tech-earnings-2018-02-01),
while Asian markets closed mixed. Gold were little changed, as oil
futures advanced. The ICE U.S. Dollar Index was dipping.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 01, 2018 07:43 ET (12:43 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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