U.S. Index Futures Open Lower Amid Nasdaq Record, Fed Speeches

U.S. index futures opened slightly lower in pre-market trading on Tuesday, reflecting investor caution after the Nasdaq hit a record high close, while the market remains attentive to speeches from various Federal Reserve members.

At 7:27 AM, Dow Jones futures (DOWI:DJI) fell 4 points, or 0.01%. S&P 500 futures declined 0.01%, and Nasdaq-100 futures lost 0.11%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note stood at 4.426%.

In the commodities market, West Texas Intermediate crude for June fell 1.34%, to $78.73 a barrel. Brent crude for July fell 1.13%, near $82.76 a barrel. Iron ore traded on the Dalian exchange rose 1.68%, to $126.74 per metric ton.

On Tuesday’s economic calendar, the focus will be on a series of speeches and appearances by notable Federal Reserve members.

The day begins at 9 AM with Tom Barkin, president of the Federal Reserve of Richmond, followed by addresses from Christopher Waller and John Williams, both prominent figures within the Fed. Raphael Bostic, president of the Atlanta Fed, will also be speaking at an event at 9:10 AM. Later in the morning, at 11:45 AM, Michael Barr, another influential Fed representative, will take the stage.

Additionally, at 3:30 PM, investors will be attentive to the weekly oil inventory numbers released by the American Petroleum Institute (API).

The evening will culminate with a moderated discussion by Raphael Bostic, involving leaders Susan Collins, from Boston, and Loretta Mester, from Cleveland, starting at 7 PM.

European markets are operating in the red this week, with a shortage of data dominating the agenda. However, investors are keeping an eye on the release of the FOMC minutes on Wednesday, along with the UK inflation numbers, which are expected to show a sharp drop in the overall rate. Although European data had little impact on today’s trading, it is worth noting that producer prices (PPI) in Germany fell more than expected in April, while the eurozone’s trade surplus increased from February to March.

Asian and Pacific stock markets closed lower, with recent enthusiasm for stimulus measures for the Chinese real estate sector losing momentum. The Chinese market retreated after three days of gains, partly due to an ambitious plan by Beijing to revive the country’s real estate sector. The Shanghai SE fell 0.42%, Japan’s Nikkei 0.31%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index 2.12%, and South Korea’s Kospi 0.65%.

After an initial advance, major U.S. stock indexes moved in opposite directions on Monday. The Nasdaq hit a new record close, rising 0.65%. The Dow fell 0.49% after closing above 40,000 on Friday. The S&P 500 rose 0.09%. The strength of the Nasdaq reflected the strong performance of semiconductor stocks, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index rising 2.2% on the day.

Scheduled to present quarterly reports before the market opens are Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW), Macy’s (NYSE:M), Xpeng (NYSE:XPEV), Zim (NYSE:ZIM), AutoZone (NYSE:AZO), Eagle Materials (NYSE:EXP), BiomX (AMEX:PHGE), PropertyGuru (NYSE:PGRU), Oneconnect Financial Technology (NYSE:OCFT), Full Truck Alliance (NYSE:YMM), among others.

After the close, investors await the numbers from XP Inc (NASDAQ:XP), Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ:URBN), Toll Brothers (NYSE:TOL), Modine Manufacturing (NYSE:MOD), ViaSat (NASDAQ:VSAT), Skyline Champion (NYSE:SKY), Alvotech SA (NASDAQ:ALVO), and more.

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