The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ($SPY) saw an increase of 0.3%, while the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust ($QQQ) was also up by 0.3% during Thursday's premarket activity, ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee's announcement scheduled for later in the day. US stock futures were on the rise, with S&P 500 Index futures climbing by 0.2%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.3% before the start of regular trading. At 8:30 am ET, the weekly jobless claims bulletin will be released, accompanied by the Q3 productivity and costs report.
The wholesale inventories report for September is due at 10 am ET, followed by the weekly EIA natural gas bulletin at 10:30 am ET. The US central bank's rate decision will be disclosed at 2 pm ET, leading to a press conference with Chair Jerome Powell at 2:30 pm ET. In the premarket session, bitcoin slipped by 1.6%, while the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF ($BITO) experienced a 1.2% decrease. In terms of sector performances, the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) rose 0.3%.
Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ($FAS.US) was up 0.9%, contrasting with its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ($FAZ) which saw a decrease of 0.8%. Shares of Wolfspeed ($WOLF) plummeted over 24% before the opening bell due to the company reporting a larger-than-expected fiscal Q1 non-GAAP loss paired with lower revenue. On the technology front, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) advanced 0.5%, with the iShares US Technology ETF ($IYW) up 0.6%, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF ($IGM.US) remained flat.
Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF ($XSD) increased 0.1%, and the iShares Semiconductor ETF ($SOXX) rose by 1.2%. EPAM Systems ($EPAM) shares gained 12% in premarket activity following higher adjusted earnings and revenue for Q3, along with an uplift in its 2024 guidance. In the industrial segment, Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ($XLI) climbed 0.6%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund ($VIS) was up by 1.2%.
The iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) remained inactive, as Rockwell Automation ($ROK) stock dropped by 4.8% after reporting lower fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and sales. In consumer stocks, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ($XLP) reported a modest increase of 0.2%. Conversely, the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund ($VDC) saw a decline of 0.9%.
The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ($IYK) was inactive, while the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ($XLY) slightly gained by 0.01%. The VanEck Retail ETF ($RTH) and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ($XRT) were also inactive. Coty ($COTY) shares slid 2.4% after posting fiscal Q1 adjusted earnings that fell short of expectations. In the energy sector, the iShares US Energy ETF ($IYE) decreased by 0.5%, whereas the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ($XLE) slightly rose by 0.1%.
Murphy Oil ($MUR) shares were up 1.1% pre-bell after the company posted revenue and adjusted net income that beat forecasts for Q3. Health care showed resilience, with the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ($XLV) advancing 0.2%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund ($VHT) remained unchanged, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF ($IYH) was inactive.
The iShares Biotechnology ETF ($IBB) gained 0.3%. Becton, Dickinson ($BDX) shares increased by 1.3% in premarket trading following the company’s report of higher fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and revenues. In commodities, front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell by 1% to $70.98 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Natural gas was up by 0.1% to $2.75 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) dropped 1.3%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) gained 0.2%. Gold futures for December decreased by 0.1% to $2,673.30 an ounce on the Comex, with silver futures retreating by 0.3% to $31.23 an ounce.
SPDR Gold Shares ($GLD) advanced by 0.3%, while iShares Silver Trust ($SLV) slipped marginally by 0.04%..