In premarket trading on Wednesday, the widely followed SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) both registered a modest increase of 0.1%. This uptick comes as investors keenly await the Federal Reserve's meeting minutes and the preliminary revision of essential jobs data, both of which are anticipated to provide further clarity on the economic landscape. US stock futures exhibited a positive trend, with S&P 500 Index futures climbing by 0.2%.
Additionally, futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average also advanced by 0.2%, while Nasdaq futures saw a gain of 0.1% ahead of the regular trading session. In a piece of pertinent economic news, applications for mortgages in the United States plummeted by 10.1% for the week ending August 16. This drop marks a partial reversal of the preceding week's impressive 16.1% surge, even as mortgage rates continue to decline, as reported by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Delving deeper into the data, refinancing applications fell by 15%, while purchase applications saw a seasonally adjusted decline of 5%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is set to release its preliminary benchmark revision of employment data for the year ending in March at 10 am ET, a crucial moment for market watchers. Also on the agenda for 10 am ET is the August Business Inflation Expectations report from the Atlanta Fed, alongside the second-quarter national services survey. At 10:30 am ET, the weekly petroleum status bulletin from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be unveiled, providing insights into the energy sector's performance. Later in the day, at 2 pm ET, the US central bank will publish the minutes from its policy meeting, which concluded on July 31, shedding light on the Fed's decision-making process during that time. In cryptocurrency markets, Bitcoin experienced a slight decline of 0.2%, while the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) mirrored this trend with a similar drop of 0.2%. Shifting focus back to the financial sector, the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) increased by 0.2%.
Meanwhile, the Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS.US) rose by 0.8%, in contrast to its bearish counterpart, the Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), which fell by 0.6%. In notable market movements, Stronghold Digital Mining (SDIG.US) witnessed an impressive rise of over 62%, while shares of Bitfarms (BITF) declined by more than 7% premarket after the company announced its intention to acquire Stronghold in a stock-for-stock transaction valued at $125 million. Furthermore, within the health care sector, the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) also advanced by 0.2%.
However, other funds, including the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) and the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH), remained inactive, while the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) saw an increase of nearly 1%. Anew Medical (WENA) reported a premarket surge of over 19% after disclosing an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with Transfertech Sherbrooke for its innovative Nanoject injector. Turning to consumer stocks, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) held steady, yet the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) gained 0.2%.
The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) rose by 0.4%, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) recorded a similar increase of 0.4%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was up by 0.9%, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) exceeded a 1% uptick. Target (TGT) saw its shares climb more than 14% before the market opened on Wednesday, following the announcement of strong Q2 results and an uplift in its guidance for 2024. In further developments within the technology sector, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) gained 0.2%, whereas the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) remained flat, and the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM.US) was inactive.
Notably, within semiconductor ETFs, the SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) was inactive, whereas the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) inched up by 0.04%. Keysight Technologies (KEYS) shares made headlines by surging 11% in premarket trading after the company reported better-than-expected fiscal Q3 results. Looking into the industrial sector, the Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) advanced by 0.1%, in contrast to the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS), which declined by 0.7%, and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ), down nearly 2%. Dycom Industries (DY) experienced a premarket dip of 3% following its announcement regarding the acquisition of Black & Veatch's public carrier wireless telecommunications infrastructure business. In the energy sector, the iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) remained inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) rose by 0.3%. Arch Resources (ARCH) shares spiked nearly 5% before the opening bell on Wednesday, while Consol Energy (CEIX) shares ascended by 4% following the companies' revelation of their agreement to proceed with an all-stock merger of equals to form Core Natural Resources, a new coal producer and supplier. In the commodities market, front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil experienced a slight decline of 0.4%, settling at $74.04 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Conversely, natural gas prices edged higher by 0.6%, reaching $2.21 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) saw an uptick of 0.2%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) moved up by 0.7%. Futures for December gold slightly decreased by 0.1%, settling at $2,547.80 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures gained 0.5%, priced at $30.11 an ounce.
The SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) retreated by 0.1%, whereas the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) rose by 0.5% in trading. Overall, the market is closely monitoring economic indicators and sector performances as it navigates a complex financial landscape..