U.S. stock benchmarks on Thursday were poised for a tepid rebound a day after a wave of late-session selling wiped out all the gains for the Dow and S&P 500 and put the Nasdaq into correction territory for the first time in two years.
Wall Street has been combating a litany of fears that has deeply unsettled the market, including worries about a global economic slowdown, the Federal Reserve’s rate-hike path and weaker-than-expected earnings outlooks.
How are major benchmarks faring?
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average YMZ8, +0.98% were rising 165 points, or 0.7%, at 24,781, those for the S&P 500 index ESZ8, +1.02% were gaining 19.20 points, or 0.7%, at 2,683, while Nasdaq-100 futures NQZ8, +1.66% were up a more decisive 84 points at 6,92.75, a return of 1.2%.
On Wednesday, the Dow DJIA, -2.41% fell 606.11 points, or 2.4%, to 24,583.42, the S&P 500 SPX, -3.09% dropped 84.59 points, or 3.1%, to 2,656.10, its sixth straight losing session. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, -4.43% shed 329.14 points, or 4.4%, to 7108.4, a performance that put the index more than 10% below its Aug. 29 all-time high, meeting the widely used definition of a market correction. The loss also marked the worst day for the Nasdaq since Aug. 18, 2011.
Thus far in October, the S&P has lost 8.9%, the Dow is down 7.1%, and the Nasdaq has shed 11.7% for the month.
Wednesday’s session also sent the Dow into losing territory for the year, with the index down 0.6% in 2018. The blue-chip index is also down for five straight weeks, its longest string of weekly losses since July, 11 2008, when the market fell for six straight weeks.
The S&P 500 also ended the trading day in the red, down 0.7% year-to-date.
DJIA, -2.41% Don’t miss: Watch out for ‘dead cat bounce’ in stocks says Morgan Stanley’s Wilson
What drove the market?
Market sentiment appears less grim after Wednesday’s ugly losses, but uncertainty still prevails as investors grapple with a host of anxieties surrounding global growth a shifts in global monetary policy, as Wall Street attempts to staunch losses in a withering October stretch.
A strong quarterly report from the likes of Tesla Inc., may offer a modicum of solace to investors as they look ahead to a policy update and news conference from the European Central Bank. The ECB will release its policy statement at 7:45 a.m. Eastern Time followed by a news conference hosted by its president, Mario Draghi, at 8:30 a.m.
Read: Investors want to hear Mario Draghi’s answer to this question about Italy and the ECB
Which stocks are in focus?
Shares of Tesla Inc. TSLA, -1.92% were soaring more than 10% in premarket action after the electric-car maker produced the largest quarterly profit in the company’s history.
Wall Street traders also will digest a glut of quarterly corporate results, including Merck & Co. Inc. MRK, -2.16% and ConocoPhillips COP, -5.10% before the bell and Amazon.com Inc. AMZN, -5.91% after the regular trading session.
What are analysts saying?
“To recap, we think that the fading impact of fiscal stimulus and tighter monetary policy from the Fed will soon start to weigh on the U.S. economy,” according to a Thursday research report from analysts at Capital Economics.
Read: The stock market faces ‘unlimited downside risk,’ warns veteran trader
What data are in focus?
A report on weekly jobless claims is due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time At the same time a reading on durable goods orders for September is due along with core capital expenditure orders A report on trade in goods advance for September also is due at 8:30 a.m. Data on pending home sales is scheduled for SeptemberProviding critical information for the U.S. trading day. Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Need to Know newsletter. Sign up here.