The global markets are worried about the developments around North Korea. The East Asian rebel country has said that it is considering a medium-to-long range missile strike on Guam, the U.S. bomber base, and the U.S. President Trump has threatened "to face fire and fury like the world has never seen."
Productivity and Cost report is a major highlight for the day. The early signs from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might open on a negative note. Asian shares closed broadly in the red, while European shares are trading lower.
As of 6.45 am ET, the Dow futures were slipping 25 points, the S&P 500 futures were shedding 9.00 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were down 32 points.
U.S. stocks closed modestly lower on Tuesday. The Dow edged down 33.08 points or 0.2 percent to 22,085.34, the Nasdaq dipped 13.31 points or 0.2 percent to 6,370.46 and the S&P 500 slipped 5.99 points or 0.2 percent to 2,474.92.
On the economic front, the Mortgage Bankers' Association's mortgage applications for the week will be published at 7.00 am ET. In the prior week the composite index was down 2.8 percent.
The Labor department's Productivity and Costs report for the second quarter will be issued at 8.30 am ET. The economists are looking for growth consensus of 0.8 percent.
Wholesale Trade data for June will be reported at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is for growth of 0.6 percent, compared to 0.4 percent.
The Energy Information Administration or EIA's petroleum status report that provides weekly information on petroleum inventories in the U.S., whether produced here or abroad, will be revealeda t 10.30 am ET. The prior week crude oil inventories declined 1.5 million barrels, while gasoline inventories were down 2.5 million barrels.
Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans will speak about current economic conditions and monetary policy in a closed group interview with representatives of the press, in Chicago at 1.00 pm ET.
10-year treasury Note auction will be held at 1.00 pm ET.
In the corporate sector, Vantiv Inc. (VNTV) reported an increase in second quarter net income attributable to $68.78 million from $59.33 million in the prior year. Net income per share increased 11 per share to $0.42 from $0.38 in the prior year period. Pro forma adjusted net income per share was $0.83. Net revenue increased 10 percent to $530 million from $480.5 million in the prior year period.
Leoni AG (LEOGN) reported a surge in second-quarter consolidated net income to 58.6 million euros from 24.3 million euros last year. Earnings per share climbed to 1.80 euros from 0.75 euro last year.
Consolidated sales rose 7.7 percent to 1.24 billion euros from previous year's 1.15 billion euros, driven by continued, good demand from the global automotive industry.
Asian shares closed mostly down on Wednesday as the markets were under selling pressure. China's Shanghai Composite index shed 6.30 points or 0.19 percent to end at 3,275.57, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed down 97.82 points or 0.35 percent at 27,757.09.
Japanese shares hit 2-1/2-month lows as the yen hit an eight-week high against the dollar. The Nikkei average fell 257.30 points or 1.29 percent to 19,738.71, the weakest closing level since May 31. The broader Topix index closed 1.07 percent lower at 1,617.90.
Australian shares closed higher. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index and the broader All Ordinaries index both rose about 0.4 percent to close at 5,765.70 and 5,816.40 points, respectively.
European shares are trading down. CAC 40 of France is declining 64.74 points or 1.24 percent. DAX of Germany is slipping 151.07 points or 1.23 percent. FTSE 100 of England is down 62.87 points or 0.83 percent. Swiss Market Index is loosing 135.10 points or 1.47 percent.
Euro stoxx 50, Europe's leading Blue-chip index for the Eurozone, is declining 1.51 percent
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April 17, 2026 15:29 ET The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to raise concerns for policymakers who worry about the impact of the supply shock and high energy prices on the real economy. Producer price data and various survey results on the housing market were the main news from the U.S. this week. In Europe, industrial production data for the euro area gained attention. GDP figures out of China and the policy move by the Singapore central bank were in focus in Asia.