US futures were weak Thursday morning following yesterday's strong trading session. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) gained 0.04% at 3:29 a.m. EST, Feb. 8, while the S&P 500 (SPX) and the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) fell 0.04% and 0.05%, respectively.
All three major indices (the Nasdaq 100, S&P 500 and Dow Jones) closed higher on Wednesday, with the NDX and SPX hitting new all-time highs. Importantly, the S&P 500 index remained close to the new milestone of 5,000. A rally in technology stocks, along with a strong corporate earnings season, supported the rally.
Yesterday, Disney shares (DIS) gained about 7% in after-hours trading on better than expected first quarter earnings and an optimistic outlook. Additionally, Arm shares (ARM) rose 20% due to strong demand for AI chips.
Meanwhile, the 10-year US Treasury yield has risen, floating near 4.11% at the time of writing. Additionally, WTI crude oil futures are hovering around $74.16 per barrel at last check, buoyed by rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the weakness of the US dollar.
In key economic reports, data on US initial jobless claims (for the week ending February 3) will be released today, which determines the number of people filing for unemployment benefits. This data helps measure the health of the labor market. On the corporate earnings front, Affirm (AFRM), AstraZeneca (AZN), ConocoPhillips (POLICE), Philip Morris (P.M) and Cloudflare (NET) are scheduled to release their quarterly results later today.
Elsewhere, European indices are set to open higher on Thursday as investors await earnings reports from some major companies, including Unilever (EN: ULVR), General Society (FR:GLร), and Maersk (DE:DP4H), among others.
Asia-Pacific markets end in green on Thursday
Most Asia-Pacific indices ended today's session on a positive note. Chinese indices posted gains as falling consumer prices bolstered hopes for further monetary easing. Additionally, Japan's stock market rallied on news that the central bank was unlikely to raise interest rates.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed down 1.27%. On the other hand, China's Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component indices ended with gains of 1.28% and 1.29%, respectively. Additionally, Japan's Nikkei and Topix indices ended up rising 2.06% and 0.5%, respectively.
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