U.S. Market Futures Pointing Higher with Positive Economic Outlook

U.S. stock futures are pointing higher in pre-market trading for Wednesday, August 24. The Dow Futures are higher at 18539.0 for a gain of 11.00 points. The S&P 500 Futures are higher at 2187.0 for a gain of 1.75 points. The Nasdaq Futures are higher at 4821.25 for a gain of 4.25 points. The Russell Futures are higher at 1247.7 for a gain of 0.70 points.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere, Japan’s Nikkei 225 is at 16597.30 for a gain of 99.94 points or 0.61 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is at 22820.78 for a loss of -178.15 points or -0.77 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite is at 3085.88 for a loss of -3.83 points or -0.12 percent. India’s S&P BSE Sensex is at 28059.94 for a gain of 69.73 points or 0.25 percent. In Europe, the FTSE 100 is at 6862.09 for a loss of -6.42 points or -0.09 percent. Germany’s DAX is at 10640.53 for a gain of 47.65 points or 0.45 percent. France’s CAC 40 is at 4449.80 for a gain of 28.35 points or 0.64 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 is at 345.33 for a gain of 1.73 points or 0.50 percent.

Wednesday’s Factors and Events

The housing market will be in the spotlight on Wednesday with a number of leading reports on the economic calendar. The Mortgage Bankers Association will report on mortgage applications. The FHFA will report its House Price Index and also on the calendar will be existing home sales. On Wednesday the Energy Information Administration will also report its weekly Petroleum Status Report.

Stocks are pointing higher ahead of the housing market data and positive support for a rate increase from the Federal Reserve which will be discussed in more detail by Janet Yellen later in the week at the Monetary Policy Symposium.

In pre-market trading, the following stocks are trading actively:

J M Smucker Co

Whole Foods Market

Northrop Grumman

Hormel Foods Corp

Lockheed Martin Corp

Accenture PLC

Chesapeake Energy

Marathon Oil

Range Resources

Williams Companies

A few companies will report second quarter earnings on Wednesday including retailers Express and Calvin Klein parent PVH. Also on watch will be Tesla who recently reported new battery innovation that will help increase the driving productivity of its cars.

Tuesday’s Activity

Stocks gained on Tuesday. For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18547.30 for a gain of 17.88 points or 0.10 percent. The S&P 500 was also higher, closing at 2186.90 for a gain of 4.26 points or 0.20 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 5260.08 for a gain of 15.47 points or 0.29 percent.

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

Other notable index closes included the small-cap Russell 2000 Index, higher at 1248.58 for a gain of 8.84 points or 0.71 percent; the S&P 600 Small-Cap Index, higher at 756.14 for a gain of 5.37 points or 0.72 percent; the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 1571.26 for a gain of 7.58 points or 0.48 percent; the S&P 100 Index closing at 965.39 for a gain of 1.24 points or 0.13 percent; the Russell 3000 Index at 1293.82 for a gain of 3.38 points or 0.26 percent; the Russell 1000 Index at 1211.83 for a gain of 2.73 points or 0.23 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 620.59 for a gain of 0.90 points or 0.15 percent.