US equity markets showed a downward trend before the opening bell on Thursday as traders reacted to the latest financial results from Microsoft ($MSFT) and Meta Platforms ($META). This comes as anticipation builds for the personal income and outlays report for September. In premarket activity, the Standard & Poor's 500 fell by 0.8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 0.5%, and the Nasdaq experienced a decline of 1.1%.
Most Asian exchanges were indicating lower performance, while European markets were also on a downward trajectory. Shares of Microsoft dropped nearly 4% before the bell, despite the technology giant reporting fiscal first-quarter results that surpassed expectations. Similarly, shares of Meta fell 3.7% after the company announced better-than-expected third-quarter results, although it cautioned investors about a significant expected increase in expenses.
In contrast, Starbucks ($SBUX) saw a slight gain of 0.5% following its quarterly results announcement. Traders are eagerly awaiting the personal income report set for release at 8:30 am ET, which includes the personal consumption expenditure core price index, a key inflation measure favored by the Federal Reserve.
Additionally, the economic calendar for Thursday features the Challenger Job-Cut Report for October at 7:30 am, along with the weekly jobless claims bulletin and the third-quarter employment cost index report, also at 8:30 am. At 9:45 am, the Chicago Purchasing Managers' Index data for the current month will be released, followed by the weekly EIA report on domestic natural-gas supplies at 10:30 am.
The farm prices report for September is scheduled for 3 pm. Several major companies are also set to report their quarterly earnings before the bell, including Mastercard ($MA), Merck ($MRK), Uber Technologies ($UBER), Comcast ($CMCSA), Anheuser-Busch Inbev ($ABI), Cigna ($CI), Li Auto ($LI), Stellantis ($STLA), Estee Lauder ($EL.US), Kellanova ($K), and Roblox ($RBLX).
Meanwhile, significant players such as Amazon.com ($AMZN), Apple ($AAPL), and Intel ($INTC) will be releasing their financials after market close. Before the markets opened, bitcoin rose by 0.5%, reaching $72,303, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 0.4% to $68.91 per barrel. Yields on 10-year Treasuries increased by 1.2 basis points to 4.28%, and gold prices dipped by 0.5% to $2,788 per ounce..