Wall Street pre-open jitters seem to be continuing, as indicated by the U.S. index futures, which point to a mixed opening on Wednesday. Despite futures signaling nervousness ahead of the open, the major averages have went on to record gains in recent sessions, capitalizing on evidence pointing towards firming up of the economic recovery. Earlier in the global trading day, Asian stocks closed higher, while the European markets are moving about in a volatile manner. The domestic markets may look ahead to a handful of key earnings and a few market moving economic indicators on the manufacturing sector, producer prices, industrial production and homebuilder confidence.
As of 6:15 pm ET, the Dow futures are moving up 1.5 points, while the S&P 500 Index futures are declining 2 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures are unchanged.
U.S. stocks showed convincing gains on Tuesday even amid a lack of any meaningful domestic catalysts.
On the economic front, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its producer price inflation report for April at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect producer prices to have declined by 0.7 percent from the previous month, while core producer price inflation is expected at 0.2 percent.
Around the time, the New York Federal Reserve will release the results of its manufacturing survey for May. The consensus expectations call for an increase in the general business conditions index for May to 3.75 from 3.05 in April. The Treasury is scheduled to release its report on the flows of financial instruments into and out of the U.S. in March at 9 am ET.
The Federal Reserve is due to release its industrial production report for April at 9:15 am ET. Economists expect a 0.2 percent month-over-month drop in industrial output in April following a 0.4 percent increase in March. Capacity utilization is expected at 78.3 percent compared to 78.5 percent in the previous month.
At 10 am ET, the National Association of Home Builders will release the results of its housing market survey for May. The consensus expectations call for an increase in the housing market index to increase to 44 in May from 42 in April.
The Energy Information Administration is scheduled to release its weekly oil inventory report for the week ended May 10th at 10:30 am ET.
In corporate news, Agilent Technologies (A) reported earnings that beat estimates, while its revenues were shy of estimates. The company's 2013 guidance was weak. The company also said its board has authorized a $500 million increase in its stock buyback program.
Photronics (PLAB) reported first quarter earnings of 8 cents per share on sales of $106.7 million. The results trailed estimates. Standard Pacific (SPF) announced a proposed secondary offering of 20 million of its common stock.
Murphy Oil (MUR) recommended that its shareholders reject an unsolicited mini-tender offer by TRC Capital to purchase up to 2 million shares or a 1.05 percent stake in the company at $61 per share. Cisco Systems (CSCO), Jack in the Box (JACK) and Netease.com (NTES) are among the companies due to release their quarterly results after the markets close.
Most Asian markets closed higher, capitalizing on the positive lead from Wall Street overnight. The Australian and Malaysian markets bucked the uptrend with moderate declines. The gains in the region were led by the Indian and the Japanese markets, where the key stock market gauges rose over 2 percent each.
Japan's Nikkei 225 closed up 337.61 points or 2.29 percent at a new 5-1/2 year high of 15,096. Export stocks rallied, as the yen weakened above the 103 level against the dollar.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed at 23,044, up 113.96 points or 0.50 percent. China's Shanghai Composite Index added 7.79 points or 0.35 percent before closing at 2,225 and India's Sensex ended 475.51 points or 2.41 percent higher at 20,198.
Meanwhile, Australia's All Ordinaries closed down 29.20 points or 0.56 percent at 5,173. Material stocks fell sharply, while consumer, energy and industrial stocks also came under selling pressure.
On the economic front, a report released by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed that its index measuring activity in the service sector fell 1.3 percent month-over-month compared to expectations for a 0.7 percent drop. A separate government report showed that Japan's consumer confidence index for April unexpected fell. The consumer confidence index fell to 44.5 in April from 44.8 in March, while economists had expected a reading of 45.5.
The overbought European markets opened little changed and have seen some degree of volatility since then amid the release of GDP data and corporate results. The French , German and the Swiss markets are rising, while the U.K. market is little changed with a negative bias.
On the economic front, preliminary report released by Eurostat showed that the euro area economy contracted by 0.2 percent sequentially in the first quarter. Economists expected a more modest 0.1 percent GDP drop. Earlier, Germany reported 0.1 percent GDP growth, softer than the 0.3 percent growth predicted by economists and the French GDP declined 0.2 percent, steeper than the 0.1 percent drop expected by economists.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.