U.S. index futures signal a higher opening after two days of declines, with the market focusing on the ADP survey and the Fed’s Beige Book, seeking clues about the future economy and monetary policy.

At 05:31 AM, Dow Jones futures (DOWI:DJI) rose 92 points, or 0.24%. S&P 500 futures advanced 0.39%, and Nasdaq-100 futures increased 0.75%. The yield on 10-year Treasury notes was at 4.162%.

In the commodities market, West Texas Intermediate crude oil for April rose 0.96% to $78.90 a barrel. Brent crude for May rose 0.71% to around $82.62 a barrel. Iron ore traded on the Dalian exchange fell 0.23% to $122.44 per metric ton.

Asian markets showed mixed results, reflecting investor caution amid current events. While mainland China had mixed performance during its annual legislative meeting, with expectations around the announced economic policies, including a 5% growth target for 2024, indexes in other countries like Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s Kospi recorded slight declines. In contrast, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng stood out with a 1.70% increase, and Australia’s ASX 200 saw a modest gain of 0.12%.

European markets are on the rise, driven by UK investors’ anticipation of the 2024 budget presentation. This crucial statement, to be delivered to the British Parliament by Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, will outline the government’s fiscal and spending strategies for the coming year. There is widespread expectation that Hunt will introduce significant cuts to Social Security taxes, a measure that could have a broad impact on personal finances and the overall economic landscape.

On the U.S. economic agenda this Wednesday, the spotlight is on February’s private-sector job creation data, to be released by ADP at 08:15 AM. The January employment and vacancies report (Jolts) will be published by the Labor Department at 10 AM, followed by January’s wholesale inventories by the Commerce Department. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will make a statement before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee at noon. The Energy Department will release the position of oil stocks until last Friday at 10:30 AM, while the Beige Book, a report on the economic situation of the American districts, will be released by the Fed at 2 PM.

U.S. stocks suffered a sharp decline on Tuesday, influenced by profit-taking and a drop in Apple‘s stock after iPhone sales in China slowed in the first six weeks of 2024. The uncertainty surrounding interest rates, especially before Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony, contributed to the negative market mood. Unfavorable economic reports and disappointing projections in the software sector also weighed on the indexes.

In terms of quarterly results, companies scheduled to present financial reports before the market opens include Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF), JD.com (NASDAQ:JD), Foot Locker (NYSE:FL), EVgo Inc (NASDAQ:EVGO), Campbell’s Soup (NYSE:CPB), Trinity Capital (NASDAQ:TRIN), Unifi Inc (NYSE:UNFI), Genius Sports (NYSE:GENI) Thor Industries (NYSE:THO), Rev Group (NYSE:REVG), among others.

After the market closes, investors await results from Victoria’s Secrets (NYSE:VSCO), Inovio Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:INO), TriplePoint Venture Growth (NYSE:TPVG), Rush Street Interactive (NYSE:RSI), Honest Company (NASDAQ:HNST), Infinera Corp (NASDAQ:INFN), Grupo Supervielle (NYSE:SUPV), Emergent Biosolutions (NYSE:EBS), Vermilion Energy (NYSE:VET), Yext Inc (NYSE:YEXT), and more.