US equity futures exhibited minimal changes on Thursday as the post-election rally begins to lose momentum. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures saw a slight gain of 0.1%, while S&P 500 futures increased by 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures experienced an uptick of 0.3%. On the previous day, major equity benchmarks recorded gains after Donald Trump's victory in the presidential election. Meanwhile, oil prices faced a decline, with the front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude trading down by 0.7% at $74.38 per barrel.
Similarly, US West Texas Intermediate crude fell by 0.8%, settling at $71.08 per barrel. Investors are anticipating new unemployment claims data set to be released at 8:30 AM ET. The number of claims is expected to rise to 223,000 for the week concluding on November 2, up from 216,000 in the prior week.
Additionally, nonfarm productivity is expected to accelerate at a rate of 2.6% in the third quarter, while unit labor costs are forecasted to increase at a rate of 1.1%. The Federal Open Market Committee is also set to unveil a policy statement at 2 PM ET, which could further influence market dynamics as traders remain on edge following the recent election results..