In a challenging start to the week, the broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust was down 1.3%, while the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust retreated by 1.5% in premarket activity, indicating a pause in the momentum of tech-driven market gains that were prominent at year-end. US stock futures also showed a downward trend, with S&P 500 Index futures declining by 1.2%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping nearly 1%, and Nasdaq futures losing approximately 1.4% just before the commencement of regular trading hours. Attention focuses on two key economic indicators releasing today: the monthly Chicago Business Barometer or PMI at 9:45 am ET, followed shortly by the monthly National Association of Realtors' Pending Home Sales index at 10 am ET.
Additionally, the Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey is scheduled for release at 10:30 am ET, which may provide further insight into the health of the economy. In the cryptocurrency space, Bitcoin saw a slight decrease of 0.01%, while the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF experienced a more notable decline of 2.3%. **Power Play: Consumer Sector Analysis** The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund was down by 0.2%, with the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund remaining flat.
In addition, the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF slipped by 0.1%, while the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund decreased by 0.3%. Notably, the VanEck Retail ETF was inactive, whereas the SPDR S&P Retail ETF managed a modest gain of 0.4%. Faraday Future Intelligent Electric saw a remarkable uptick of more than 25% pre-bell as the company announced the first delivery of its FF 91 2.0 Futurist Alliance electric vehicle scheduled for January to an entrepreneur, stimulating investor enthusiasm. **Winners and Losers: Technology Sector Review** In the technology segment, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund retreated by 1.4%, with the iShares US Technology ETF down about 1.7%.
The iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF saw a decrease of 1.3%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF had a minor decline of 0.6%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF fell slightly by 0.5%. Meanwhile, Aurora Mobile experienced an increase of more than 16% in premarket activity after announcing a board-approved stock buyback plan of up to $5 million for ordinary shares, which is set to run for the next 12 months starting January 1. **Industrial Sector Overview** The Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund declined by 1.1%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund gained 0.6%, and the iShares US Industrials ETF saw a reduction of 0.9%.
Boeing shares fell nearly 4% pre-bell following a tragic incident over the weekend involving a 737-800 jet operated by South Korea's Jeju Air, resulting in the loss of all passengers and four crew members. **Financial Sector Movements** In the financial landscape, the Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund saw a decline of 1%.
Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares fell by 3.3%, while its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares, showed a 3.4% increase. Meanwhile, Robinhood Markets shares were down 3.4% in pre-market trading on Monday, extending a 3.3% loss from Friday’s close. A Friday filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that the Chief Legal Officer sold 300,000 Robinhood shares for around $11.3 million, raising concerns among investors. **Health Care Sector Performance** The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund remained flat, while the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund edged down 0.2%.
The iShares US Healthcare ETF was inactive during this timeframe, as was the iShares Biotechnology ETF. IDEAYA Biosciences shares fell by 1.7% in premarket trading after the company disclosed it has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals for its experimental cancer drug, SHR-4849. **Energy Sector Insights** The energy scene saw the iShares US Energy ETF rise by 0.4%, along with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund, which was up by 0.1%.
Comstock Resources stocks saw an increase of more than 4% before Monday's opening bell, having gained 2.6% on Friday. A recent filing revealed that Director Elizabeth Davis sold 16,149 shares for a total of $274,134 on December 24. **Commodities Market Activity** On the commodities front, front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil advanced by 0.3%, settling at $70.81 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Natural gas prices surged by over 16%, reaching $3.95 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund saw a 0.5% rise, while the United States Natural Gas Fund increased by more than 15%. Gold futures for February were recorded at a 0.2% increase at $2,635.90 an ounce. Silver futures rose by 0.1%, touching $29.99 an ounce, with SPDR Gold Shares and the iShares Silver Trust also showing upward trends. **Market Tickers**: $US500, $US30, $SPY, $QQQ, $XLP, $VDC, $IYK, $XLY, $RTH, $XRT, $XLV, $VHT, $IYH, $IBB, $FAS.US, $FAZ, $XLI, $VIS, $IYW, $IGM.US, $XSD, $SOXX, $IYE, $XLE, $GLD, $SLV, $IWM, $EEM, $EXI, $BITO, $CRK, $IDYA, $HOOD, $BA, $JG, $FFIE.