Stock futures rose slightly after the market’s comeback rally hit a speedbump on Wednesday.
In early morning trade on Thursday, stock Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 140 points, while Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 futures traded in positive territory.
The S&P 500 snapped a two-day winning streak on Wednesday, closing the regular session 0.1% lower. The Dow also shed 71.34 points, or 0.2%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.1% to squeeze out one more record closing high.
Eight out of 11 S&P 500 sectors closed in the red, that is led by utilities, which dropped 1.1%. However, energy names such as Exxon Mobil, Occidental Petroleum and Devon Energy rose since oil prices continued to climb. Technology names such as Tesla and Netflix also closed higher.
Despite Wednesday’s hiccup, the major three indexes are up more than 1% this week, rallying from a sell-off previous week after the Fed Reserve heightened inflation forecast and expectations of rate hikes in coming times.
Comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday reiterated that inflation pressures will be temporary, that seemed to soothe market sentiment.
“Beneath the optimism, markets are at risk of becoming complacent – and vulnerable to shocks. Any signal that interest rates and bond yields could rise, even in the absence of pronounced inflationary pressure, could shatter market exuberance,” Gaurav Mallik, Chief Portfolio Strategist at State Street Global Advisors, said.
“Central banks will walk a tightrope between allowing the economy to run hot – which history has shown to be a bad idea – and managing inflation risk,” he added.
Investors are awaiting new jobless claims data which is set to be released on Thursday for the latest outlook on unemployment.