Optimism on Wall Street has waned after yesterday's knee-jerk reaction to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's testimony, although it offered no real impetus. The U.S. index futures point to a modestly lower opening for Wall Street stocks on Wednesday. Some disappointing tech earnings could also adversely affect market mood. Another slew of first-tier earnings are due today, while traders also look ahead to the housing starts report, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book and the second day of Bernanke's Congressional testimony.
As of 6:15 am ET, the Dow futures are down 30 points and the S&P 500 futures are slipping 5 points, while the Nasdaq 100 futures are declining 7 points.
U.S. stocks rebounded on Tuesday, courtesy some encouraging earnings reports and economic data.
On the economic front, a report on housing starts and building permits is slated to be released at 8:30 am ET. Economists estimate housing starts for June to come in at 745,000, while building permits are expected to have slipped to 775,000. In May, housing starts and building permits were at 708,000 and 780,000, respectively.
Bernanke will testify before the House Financial Services Committee at 10 am ET.
The Energy Information Administration is scheduled to release its weekly petroleum inventory report for the week ended July 6th at 10:30 AM ET.
The Federal Reserve is due to release its Beige Book, a compilation of anecdotal evidence on economic conditions from each of the 12 Federal Reserve districts, at 2 PM ET.
In corporate news, Intel's (INTC) second quarter non-GAAP earnings came in ahead of estimates, while its revenues missed forecasts. The company lowered its full year revenue growth outlook to 3-5 percent from its previous forecast for growth in high single digits.
Yahoo! (YHOO) reported second quarter earnings that were ahead of expectations, while its revenues were slightly shy of estimates.
CSX (CSX) said its second quarter net earnings climbed 3 cents to 49 cents per share, while its revenues were almost flat at $3.012 billion. The earnings beat estimates, while the revenues missed expectations slightly.
Wynn Resorts (WYNN) reported second quarter adjusted net income of $1.38 per share, lower than $1.60 per share in the year-ago period. Net revenue fell to $1.25 billion from $1.37 billion last year. The results trailed estimates.
United Rentals (URI) reported adjusted second quarter earnings of 66 cents per share compared to 40 cents per share last year. Revenues climbed to $993 million from $629 million in the year-ago quarter. The earnings exceeded estimates, while the revenues trailed expectations.
FIS' (FIS) second quarter earnings beat estimates, while its revenues were in line. While reiterating its 2012 organic revenue growth estimate of 3-5 percent, the company lowered its adjusted earnings from continuing operations guidance to $2.45-$2.55 per share from $2.47-$2.57 per share.
American Express (AXP), eBay (EBAY), F5 Networks (FFIV), IBM (IBM), Kinder Morgan Partners (KMP), Noble Corp. (NE), Qualcomm (QCOM), Skyworks (SWKS), SLM (SLM), Stryker (SYK), Xilinx (XLNX) and YUM! Brands (YUM) are among the companies due to release their quarterly results after the markets close.
The major Asian markets closed on a mixed note despite the positive lead from Wall Street overnight. Traders were apparently unhappy over the lack of any concrete announcement from Bernanke in his Congressional testimony.
Japan's Nikkei 225 average index closed down 28.26 points or 0.32 percent at 8,727. Pharma, real estate, auto and some technology stocks advanced, while utility, retail, financial and resource stocks moved to the downside.
Australia's All Ordinaries closed at 4,156, down 18.90 points or 0.45 percent. Energy and material stocks declined sharply, dragging the index lower. BHP fell despite reporting that its iron ore production rose 15 percent in the second quarter. Peer Rio Tinto and smaller rival Fortescue also declined.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid 215.45 points or 1.11 percent before closing at 19,240. South Korea's Kospi and the Taiwanese Weighted Average ended down over 1 percent each, while the Singaporean Straits Times Index, New Zealand's NZ 50 Index, Malaysia's KLSE Composite Index, Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index, China's Shanghai Composite Index and India's Sensex all ended modestly higher.
The major European averages are trading modestly higher amid the release of mixed domestic earnings and ahead of the release of U.S. housing starts and Bernanke's testimony before the House Financial Services Committee.
In corporate news, ASML Holding NV (ASML) reported second quarter profits that were in line with its guidance and ahead of estimates by most analysts. Swedish telecommunication company Ericsson (ERIC) reported second quarter net income that fell 64 percent to 1.11 billion Swedish Kronor, with the slowdown in spending by wireless carries responsible for the predicament.
Credit Suisse (CS) announced plans to increase its capital by 15.3 billion Swiss francs by the end of 2012, while it also seeking to cut 1 billion francs in cost by the end of 2013. The company also reported a small increase in its second quarter profits.
by RTT Staff Writer
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