U.S. Market Futures Pointing Higher as Stocks Appear Ready to Gain

U.S. stock futures are pointing higher in pre-market trading for Wednesday, May 25. The Dow Futures are up 61 points to 17748.0. The S&P 500 Futures are up 7.50 points to 2082.5. The Nasdaq Futures are higher at 4465.5 for a gain of 20.25. The Russell Futures are showing a gain of 3.70 points to 1137.8.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere, markets traded mostly higher. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei was higher at 16757.35 for a gain of 258.59 points or 1.57 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was higher at 20368.05 for a gain of 537.62 points or 2.71 percent. The Shanghai Composite was lower at 2815.09 for a loss of -6.58 points or -0.23 percent. The S&P BSE Sensex was higher at 25881.17 for a gain of 575.70 points or 2.28 percent and the NSE Nifty also gained, closing at 7,934.90, up 186.05 points or 2.40 percent. The Asia Dow is higher at 2620.77 for a gain of 59.67 points or 2.34 percent. In Europe the FTSE 100 is higher at 6255.09 for a gain of 35.83 points or 0.58 percent. The FTSE 250 is higher at 17182.31 for a gain of 46.64 points or 0.27 percent. Germany’s DAX is higher at 10178.89 for a gain of 121.58 points or 1.21 percent. France’s CAC 40 is higher at 4473.31 for a gain of 41.79 points or 0.94 percent. The Europe Dow is also higher at 1563.25 for a gain of 18.47 points or 1.20 percent.

Wednesday’s Factors and Events

A list of economic indicators are on the calendar for Wednesday. Throughout the day will be the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Applications Report, International Trade in Goods, the FHFA House Price Index, the PMI Services Report and the EIA Petroleum Status Report. Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President, Robert Kaplan, will also speak in the afternoon and investors will be continuing to watch for signs of economic direction.

Stocks actively trading in the pre-market include Apple, PayPal, Microsoft, Alphabet, Transocean and Carnival. Stocks to watch for the day include HP Enterprises, Monsanto and AB InBev. HP Enterprises announced earnings after the bell on Tuesday. Monsanto rejected Bayer’s bid for a takeover and AB InBev received approval to merge with SABMiller in the beverage industry. Companies reporting earnings today include Tiffany & Co., Costco, Guess and HP.

Tuesday’s Activity

On Tuesday, stocks traded mostly higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 17,706.05 for a gain of 213.12 points or 1.22 percent. The S&P 500 was also higher, closing at 2,076.06 for a gain of 28.02 points or 1.37 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 4,861.06 for a gain of 95.27 points or 2.00 percent.

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Source: DJIA, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. Google Finance.

Other notable index closes in the U.S. included the small-cap Russell 2000 closing higher at 1,135.31 for a gain of 23.94 points or 2.15 percent; the S&P 600 closing at 694.02 for a gain of 14.53 points or 2.14 percent; the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index closing at 1,471.49 for a gain of 25.05 points or 1.73 percent; the Russell 3000 closing at 1,222.90 for a gain of 17.23 points or 1.43 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index closing at 584.85 for a gain of 6.81 points or 1.18 percent.