United States stock futures held within a tight range on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST), as investors weighed a strong rally in technology names against deepening concerns about the economy.
By 9:15 am AEST (11:15 pm GMT), Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.2%, while S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures remained little changed.
In extended deals, American Eagle Outfitters surged 24.3% after delivering unexpectedly strong quarterly results, with investors cheering robust earnings and momentum in the company’s turnaround efforts.
Asana also advanced, gaining 9% after the workplace management platform reported better-than-expected earnings and raised its guidance.
In contrast, artificial intelligence software provider C3.ai slumped 14.7% after posting a wider quarterly loss and a decline in revenue.
Figma, in its first report as a publicly traded company, dropped 10.4% as its earnings failed to meet Wall Street expectations, overshadowing its debut performance.
Salesforce slipped 4% despite topping consensus estimates for the quarter. The decline came after the cloud software giant issued a weaker-than-expected forecast, raising concerns over its growth trajectory.
The moves followed a mixed Wall Street session. The S&P 500 rose 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 1%, helped by strength in technology shares.
In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which carries greater exposure to the broader economy, slipped 0.1%.
Tech stocks were buoyed by Alphabet and Apple after a favourable ruling in a long-running antitrust case. Alphabet avoided the threat of a forced breakup, while Apple benefited from the court’s decision to allow it to continue preloading Google Search on iPhones.
However, gains across the market were capped by signs of labour market weakness. Job openings fell to levels rarely seen since the height of the pandemic, according to Wednesday’s data.
ANZ analysts noted: "Overall, the data are consistent with the view that the labour market is weak and support a 25bp September rate cut."
Commenting on monetary policy, ANZ added: "Fed Governor Waller (who voted to cut at the Fed’s July meeting) said a rate cut at the next meeting is warranted.
"He cited labour market weakness as the key reason, noting that it is important to get ahead of an imminent labour market slowdown.
"He maintained that recession remains an unlikely scenario and noted that the pace of rate cuts can always be adjusted. He expects multiple rate cuts in the next few months."
Attention now turns to upcoming labour market releases. The ADP private payrolls report due Thursday is expected to show employers added 65,000 jobs in August, down from 104,000 previously.
The figures will be closely watched ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report, where markets anticipate an increase of 75,000 jobs.
