Stock futures remained largely unchanged on Wednesday evening (Thursday AEDT) after Wall Street indices approached new record highs during the regular session.
By 10:15 am AEDT (11:15 pm GMT) Dow Jones Industrial Average futures and S&P 500 futures dipped remained flat while Nasdaq 100 futures eased 0.1%.
In after-hours deals, Alcoa slipped 0.8% despite better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings results, with revenue rising 20% sequentially to US$3.5 billion.
Discover Financial Services climbed 0.9% after reporting fourth-quarter 2024 net income of $1.3 billion compared to $366 million in the same quarter of 2023.
Electronic Arts also tanked 11.1% after releasing preliminary results that missed estimates.
During Wednesday's trade, the S&P 500 set an intraday record high before closing with a 0.6% gain, just shy of a record closing level. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.3%, and the Dow rose 0.3%, with both indices nearing fresh highs.
The stock market has been buoyed by optimism over potential tax cuts, deregulation under President Donald Trump, and signs of continued economic growth.
Corporate earnings have also supported the rally. Netflix surged over 9% on Wednesday after reporting an impressive fourth-quarter performance.
Investors now await reports from companies including GE Aerospace and American Airlines, scheduled for release before the market opens on Thursday.
