By Barbara Kollmeyer and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
Nasdaq, S&P 500 futures drop over 1% in 20-minute
stretch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures trimmed dramatic
losses fueled by a selloff in Asian markets on Wednesday, but were
still firmly lower ahead of a raft of gauges of U.S. economic
health set to be released, including the ADP employment report,
manufacturing data and car sales.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) dropped 58
points, or 0.3%, to 17,645, while those for the S&P 500 index
(ESM5) dropped 7.55 points, or 0.4%, to 2,053.25. Futures for the
Nasdaq-100 (NQM5) lost 12.75 points, or 0.3%, to 4,316.75.
The benchmarks had briefly erased losses after strong European
data
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/eurozone-manufacturing-activity-picks-up-in-march-2015-04-01)
spurred a rally across the pond, but the upbeat sentiment
evaporated closer to the market open.
Early selloff: The losses, however, were smaller than during
Asian hours, when the benchmarks dramatically weakened as the
dollar pitched lower against the yen. "It's not every day you see
Nasdaq and S&P futures dropping 1.3% in around 20 minutes, and
0.7% in three minutes, especially when risk FX (such as AUD/USD) or
copper didn't go along for the ride," IG chief market strategist
Chris Weston said in a note.
He said there was a lot of "head-scratching" going on over just
what triggered the move. The futures' drop coincided with a fall
for the U.S. dollar against the yen (USDJPY). A lackluster reading
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/japans-tankan-sentiment-survey-shows-few-gains-2015-03-31)
from the Bank of Japan's tankan corporate-sentiment survey prompted
investors to buy the yen, a perceived haven. The dollar traded at
Yen120.07 at the latest, compared with Yen120.14 late Tuesday in
New York.
Appetite for riskier investments was already weak in Asia after
sizable losses Tuesday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-fed-speakers-iran-keep-investors-on-edge-as-quarter-ends-2015-03-31)
for Wall Street. The S&P 500 (SPX) finished down 18.35 points,
or 0.9%, at 2,067.89, though it still managed a quarterly gain of
0.4% for its ninth-straight winning quarter.
Data: Later Wednesday, investors will get another big batch of
U.S. data -- ADP employment for March at 8:15 a.m. Eastern Time,
which comes ahead of Friday's nonfarm-payrolls data. After that,
the Markit purchasing managers index is due at 9:45 a.m.
Eastern.
At 10 a.m. Eastern, the Institute for Supply Management's
manufacturing index for March will be released. It is expected to
have slipped to 52.5% from 52.9% in February
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ism-manufacturing-slows-in-february-for-fourth-month-2015-03-02).
Construction spending for February comes out at the same
time.
Fed speakers: San Francisco Fed President John Williams
moderates a panel on financial stability at the Atlanta Fed policy
conference at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. Also on the docket today, Atlanta
Fed chief Dennis Lockhart appears on a monetary policy panel at an
Atlanta Fed conference at 11 a.m. Eastern.
Both are voters of the Federal Open Market Committee.
Stocks to watch: Shares of Hewlett-Packard Co.(HPQ) climbed 1.2%
premarket after Jefferies lifted the computer maker to buy.
Jeffries sees "significant longer-term value" not reflected in the
current valuation.
Twitter Inc.(TWTR) picked up 1.1% ahead of the bell after it was
initiated at buy with a $65 price target, also at Jefferies.
Shares of Staples Inc.(SPLS) added 1.3% after KeyBanc Capital
lifted the office-supply company to overweight from sector
weight.
Monsanto Co.(MON) is projected to report fiscal second-quarter
earnings of $2.94 a share, according to a consensus estimate by
FactSet.
And Acuity Brands Inc.(AYI) is expected to report fiscal
second-quarter earnings of $1.05 a share.
Other markets: Oil (CLK5) remained under pressure
(http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) as talks on
Iran's nuclear program resumed in Switzerland after the deadline
was extended.
Metals were mixed, while the dollar struggled for direction
against (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid)other
major currencies.
Asian stock markets closed mixed, with China's benchmark
Shanghai Composite Index ending above 3,800 for the first time
since 2008 (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid).
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