Rhetoric between the U.S. and North Korea is heating up
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are trading below fair value this morning, ahead of a busy day on Wall Street. Traders will have plenty of economic data to sift through -- including this morning's ADP private sector payrolls report for June, which came in below expectations. The weekly update on domestic crude inventories could put oil prices in focus yet again, with August-dated crude futures last seen up 1.6% at $45.87 per barrel. Meanwhile, investors are digesting comments from President Trump, who said he's considering "severe" actions against
North Korea.
Tech stocks could be front and center, too, as high-profile names like Facebook, Amazon, and Apple are all pointed notably lower before the opening bell.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 686,910 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to 421,687 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.61, and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.63.
- U.S.-traded shares of surgical robot maker Mazor Robotics Ltd (NASDAQ:MZOR) are up more than 6% in pre-market trading, after the company gave an upbeat second-quarter revenue outlook. The move puts MZOR stock atop its 50-day moving average for the first time since its early June bear gap.
- Another pre-market winner is biopharmaceutical name BeiGene Ltd (ADR) (NASDAQ:BGNE). BGNE stock is pointed 13.2% higher ahead of the open, with the shares set to resume their uptrend following yesterday's pullback. As of yesterday's close at $52.27, BeiGene stock is up 72.1% year-to-date.
- Meanwhile, L Brands Inc (NYSE:LB) is off 7.6% in electronic trading, after the company reported another month of disappointing same-store sales. LB stock has been gaining steam since bottoming near $43 in early April, but today's pre-market move has the shares back below their 50-day moving average.
- International trade data and the ISM non-manufacturing index also come out today. Additionally, San Francisco Fed President John Williams and Fed Governor Jerome Powell have speeches planned. AZZ (AZZ) and Cherokee (CHKE) are reporting earnings.
Overseas Trading
Stocks in Asia ended mostly lower today amid persistent geopolitical uncertainty, though China's Shanghai Composite bucked the trend by rising 0.2%. Tokyo-listed equities fell the hardest as Japanese bond yields surged, and the benchmark Nikkei gave up 0.4% to settle below the 20,000 level. Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.2%, and South Korea's Kospi edged 0.02% lower.
European stock markets are also pointed lower at last look, with traders casting a wary eye on Trump's speech in Poland, where he addressed rising tensions with North Korea and Russia's election meddling. The European Central Bank (ECB) minutes are also in focus; according to the account, one policymaker proposed abandoning the central bank's pledge to ramp up its quantitative easing efforts in the face of improving economic data. At midday, France's CAC 40 has tumbled 1.3%, the German DAX is down 1%, and London's FTSE 100 is off 0.8%.