In the early trading hours on Tuesday, US equity futures remained largely unchanged as traders prepared for significant quarterly reports from industry giants Microsoft, Advanced Micro Devices, and Starbucks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures experienced a slight decrease of 0.1%, while the S&P 500 futures saw a modest increase of 0.2%.
Nasdaq futures were notably up by 0.3%, indicating a mixed sentiment in the market ahead of the earnings announcements scheduled for later in the day. These major companies are expected to release their quarterly earnings following the closing bell, and analysts are keenly awaiting insights that may influence market trends. Additionally, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve is set to commence a two-day meeting today, which could potentially have implications for monetary policy and interest rates moving forward. In commodities, oil prices experienced a downturn, with the global benchmark, North Sea Brent crude, decreasing by 0.6% to $78.57 per barrel.
Similarly, US West Texas Intermediate crude also fell by 0.6%, settling at $75.36 per barrel. Investors are also anticipating the House Price Index, set to be released at 9 am ET, with projections suggesting a 0.2% increase in May, reflecting the same rise observed in April according to Bloomberg's estimates.
Furthermore, the Consumer Confidence Index, which is due at 10 am ET, is expected to drop to 99.7 in July from 100.4 in June. Job openings, derived from the Labor Department's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, are projected to come in at 8.02 million for June, a slight decline compared to May's 8.14 million. Turning to international markets, Japan's Nikkei index closed the day up by 0.2%.
In contrast, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index and China's Shanghai Composite each fell by 1.4% and 0.4%, respectively. In Europe, the UK's FTSE 100 recorded a decrease of 0.2%, while Germany's DAX index made a marginal gain of 0.4% in early afternoon trading. In terms of individual stocks, shares of Pfizer rose by 1.2% after the pharmaceutical company announced Q2 financial results that surpassed analysts' expectations and revised its 2024 guidance upwards.
Similarly, PayPal's shares surged by 8% following their release of higher adjusted earnings and revenue for Q2. On the flip side, shares of QXO plummeted by 82%, reacting to their announcement of a secondary offering of approximately 789.5 million shares of common stock. Symbiotic also faced a tough day with a 22% drop in their stock price, attributed to a fiscal Q3 loss that fell short of analysts' forecasts..