The benchmark US stock measures were pointing higher before Thursday's market opening as traders absorbed the Federal Reserve's decision to reduce its policy rate by 25 basis points. The Standard & Poor's 500 increased by 0.5%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq rose by 0.4% each in premarket trading.
In contrast, Asian and European stock exchanges were experiencing declines. The Federal Open Market Committee, which convened on Wednesday, reduced interest rates to a range of 4.25% to 4.50%, in alignment with Wall Street's projections. The committee also indicated there would be fewer rate cuts in the future than previously anticipated. On Thursday's economic schedule, we can expect the third and final estimate of gross domestic product for the third quarter, the weekly jobless claims report, the Philadelphia Fed's manufacturing index for December, and the revised third-quarter corporate profits—all scheduled for 8:30 am ET. Additionally, reports on existing home sales and the leading indicators index for November will be released at 10 am, followed by the weekly domestic natural gas supplies report from the EIA at 10:30 am.
The Kansas City Fed Manufacturing Index for this month is set for an 11 am release. In pre-market action, shares of Micron Technology ($MU) plummeted 14% after the memory and storage product manufacturer provided a disappointing second-quarter forecast. Lennar ($LEN) also saw a 10% drop as the homebuilder reported fiscal fourth-quarter results that fell short of expectations. Several major companies, including Accenture ($ACN), Cintas ($CTAS), Paychex ($PAYX), Darden Restaurants ($DRI), FactSet Research Systems ($FDS), ConAgra Brands ($CAG), CarMax ($KMX), and Lamb Weston ($LW), are set to announce their latest financial results before the market opens.
Companies such as Nike ($NKE), FedEx ($FDX), and BlackBerry ($BB.US) will report earnings after the market closes. Before the opening bell, Bitcoin rose by 1.1% to $102,313, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil saw a slight decrease of 0.1% to $70.51 a barrel. Yields on 10-year Treasuries climbed by 3.2 basis points to 4.53%, and gold experienced a drop of 0.8% to $2,631 an ounce..