U.S. stock futures are pointing higher in pre-market trading for Wednesday, August 10. The Dow Futures are at 18483.0 for a gain of 17.00 points. The S&P 500 Futures are at 2180.25 for a gain of 2.75 points. The Nasdaq Futures are at 4797.75 for a gain of 6.00 points. The Russell Futures are at 1231.3 for a gain of 1.40 points.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere Japan’s Nikkei 225 is at 16735.12 for a loss of -29.85 points or -0.18 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is at 22492.43 for a gain of 26.82 points or 0.12 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite is at 3018.75 for a loss of -6.93 points or -0.23 percent. India’s S&P BSE Sensex is at 27807.21 for a loss of -277.95 points or -0.99 percent. In Europe, the FTSE 100 is at 6849.78 for a loss of -1.52 points or -0.02 percent. Germany’s DAX is at 10662.42 for a loss of -30.48 points or -0.29 percent. France’s CAC 40 is at 4460.64 for a loss of -7.43 points or -0.17 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 is at 344.26 for a loss of -0.41 points or -0.12 percent.

Wednesday’s Factors and Events

 The economic calendar is light on Wednesday. The day’s reports will include the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Applications Report, the JOLTS employment report, the Energy Information Administration Petroleum Status Report and the Treasury Budget. The Treasury will also hold a 10-Yr Note Auction.

In pre-market trading the following stocks are trading actively: First Solar, CF Industries Holdings, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Gap, NRG Energy, Extra Space Storage, Endo International, News Corp., Mylan NV and Jacobs Engineering.

Improving earnings in the second quarter from corporate America has been helping to fuel stock market momentum. On Wednesday approximately 120 companies will report earnings. The futures market is pointing higher with technology stocks leading the way in recent trading. Oil prices and the energy sector will also be in focus on Wednesday as the EIA reports its weekly inventory which has a significant effect on prices.

Tuesday’s Activity

 On Tuesday, market indexes were higher with the Nasdaq Composite reaching a new closing high. For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18533.05 for a gain of 3.76 points or 0.02 percent. The S&P 500 was higher at 2181.74 for a gain of 0.85 points or 0.04 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 5225.48 for a gain of 12.34 points or 0.24 percent.

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

Other notable index closes included the small-cap Russell 2000 Index, higher at 1231.74 for a gain of 1.32 points or 0.11 percent; the S&P 600 Small-Cap Index, higher at 745.86 for a gain of 0.17 points or 0.02 percent; the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index, closing at 1562.50 for a loss of -0.07 points or -0.01 percent; the S&P 100 Index closing at 966.93 for a gain of 0.95 points or 0.10 percent; the Russell 3000 Index closing at 1289.30 for a gain of 0.73 points or 0.06 percent; the Russell 1000 Index, closing at 1208.59 for a gain of 0.63 points or 0.05 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index closing at 620.14 for a loss of -0.84 points or -0.14 percent.