Futures Pointing To Roughly Flat Open On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Wednesday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction after ending yesterday's choppy trading session mostly higher.

Traders may remain reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of earnings news from AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA).

Nvidia, which is scheduled to release its second quarter results after the close of today's trading, is rising by 0.5 percent in pre-market trading.

A lack of major U.S. economic data may also keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of a closely watched report later in the week.

On Friday, the Commerce Department is due to release its report on personal income and spending in the month of July, which includes the Federal Reserve's preferred readings on consumer price inflation.

The report, which is expected to show an uptick in the annual rate of core consumer price growth to 2.9 percent in July from 2.8 percent in June, could impact the outlook for interest rates.

CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating an 88.2 percent chance the Fed will lower rates by a quarter point at its next monetary policy meeting in September.

Reports on weekly jobless claims and pending home sales may also attract attention in the coming days along with a revised reading on second quarter GDP.

Stocks showed a lack of direction throughout much of the trading session on Tuesday but managed to end the day mostly higher. The major averages all moved back to the upside after ending the previous session in negative territory.

The major averages finished the day just off their highs of the session. The Nasdaq advanced 94.98 points or 0.4 percent to 21,544.27, the S&P 500 climbed 26.62 points or 0.4 percent to 6,465.94 and the Dow rose 135.60 points or 0.3 percent at 45,418.07.

The choppy trading seen for most of the day came as traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the earnings news from Nvidia. The AI darling and market leader ended the day up by 1.1 percent.

Stocks may have benefitted from a decrease by short-term treasury yields, which came as traders bet President Donald Trump's interference with the Federal Reserve will lead to lower interest rates in the near term.

In a letter posted on Truth Social on Monday, Trump said he is removing Fed Governor Lisa Cook from her position amid accusations she made false statements on one or more mortgage agreements.

However, Cook responded with a statement claiming Trump does not have the authority to fire her and said she will not resign. Cook said she would file a lawsuit challenging her removal, while the Fed said it will "abide by any court decision."

Airline stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the session, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 2.3 percent to a six-month closing high.

Substantial strength was also visible among gold stocks, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging by 2.2 percent to a twelve-year closing high amid a modest increase by the price of the precious metal.

Networking stocks also turned in a strong performance on the day, as reflected by the 2.1 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Networking Index.

Banking, pharmaceutical and brokerage stocks also saw notable strength, while oil service stocks moved to the downside amid a sharp pullback by the price of crude oil.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are inching up $0.13 to $63.38 a barrel after tumbling $1.55 to $63.25 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $3,429.50, down $3.50 compared to the previous session's close of $3,433. On Tuesday, gold climbed $15.50.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 148.07 yen compared to the 147.40 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1593 compared to yesterday's $1.1642.

Asia

Asian markets moved in a mixed fashion on Wednesday amidst anxiety ahead of the release of earnings news from chip giant Nvidia.

While Japan's Nikkei 225 Index, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index and South Korea's Kospi increased, China's Shanghai Composite Index, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index and New Zealand's NZX 50 Index declined.

China's Shanghai Composite Index plunged 1.8 percent to finish trading at 3,800.35. The day's trading ranged between 3,887.20 and 3,800.35. The Shenzhen Component Index closed 1.4 percent lower at 12,295.07.

The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.2 percent to close at 42,480.50. The day's trading range was between 42,268 and 42,630.5.

Nikon Corp. topped gains with a surge of 20.7 percent. Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. followed with a rally of 6.1 percent. Rakuten declined 3.9 percent.

The Korean Stock Exchange's Kospi Index added 0.3 percent to close trading at 3,187.16. The day's trading range was between 3,165.77 and 3,189.31.

The Hang Seng Index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange slumped 1.3 percent from the previous close to finish trading at 25,201.76. The day's trading range was between a high of 25,653.92 and a low of 25,140.17.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index closed trading at 8,960.50, gaining 0.3 percent from the previous close. The day's trading range was between 8,935.20 and 8,965.00.

Tabcorp Holdings surged 23.9 percent followed by Siteminder that rallied 21 percent. Domino's Pizza Enterprises plunged 22 percent followed by Woolworths Group that declined 14.7 percent.

The NZX 50 Index of the New Zealand Stock Exchange declined 0.7 percent to close trading at 12,861.84, versus the previous close of 12,957.98. The day's trading ranged between 12,853.17 and 13,015.11.

Biotechnology company Pacific Edge topped gains with an addition of 3.7 percent. Pharmaceutical retailer EBOS Group led losses with a plunge of 13.9 percent after it reported a massive decline in revenues and profits.

Europe

European stocks are turning in a mixed performance on Wednesday as political uncertainty in France and a lack of any significant positive triggers render the mood cautious. Investors are also awaiting earnings new from AI major Nvidia.

French Prime Minister François Bayrou urged lawmakers on Tuesday to choose between "chaos" and "responsibility," when the confidence vote takes place on September 8.

A survey showing weak German consumer confidence is also weighing on sentiment. German consumer confidence is set to continue to fall in September as rising fear of job losses weighed on purchase decisions and dampened hopes of robust economic recovery, a closely watched survey showed.

While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.7 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is just below the unchanged line and the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent.

Bank stocks are among the notable losers in the UK market. Natwest Group, Barclays and Standard Chartered are down 2.5 percent, 1.45 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.

Endeavour Mining, Bunzl, Associated British Foods, Prudential and Sainsbury are among the other notable losers.

JD Sports Fashion is up nearly 1.5 percent after the company's board announced a share buyback program of 100 million pounds.

JD Sports Fashion reported that its second quarter Group like-for-like sales were down 3.0 percent. On an organic basis, sales were up 2.2 percent. For the 26 weeks to 2 August, like-for-like sales were down 2.5 percent.

Pershing Square Holdings, National Grid, Airtel Africa, Severn Trent, Vodafone Group, Intercontinental Hotels Group, SSE, Pearson, Haleon and Games Workshop are gaining 1 to 1.5 percent.

In Germany, Commerzbank is down 3.2 percent, dropping for a second straight session. Deutsche Bank is down 2.3 percent. Zalando, BASF and Siemens Energy are down 1.4 to 1.7 percent.

Porsche is gaining more than 1 percent. Covestro, RWE, SAP, Bayer, Vonovia, Munich RE, Deutsche Telekom and E.ON are up with modest gains.

In the French market, Carrefour is down 2.2 percent. ArcelorMittal, Unibail Rodamco and Edenred are lower by 1.1 to 1.4 percent. Stellantis, Veolia Environment, Credit Agricole, Eurofins Scientific and BNP Paribas are also weak.

LVMH is rising 1.8 percent. AXA, Thales, Hermes International, Vivendi, Bouygues, TotalEnergies, Air Liquide, Dassault Systemes, Kering and Vinci are gaining 1 to 1.3 percent.

The forward-looking GfK consumer sentiment index fell to -23.6 in September from -21.7 in the previous month. The reading was forecast to drop moderately to -22.

"With the third consecutive decline, consumer sentiment is now definitely in the summer slump," NIM Head of Consumer Climate Rolf Burkl said.

"Growing fear of job losses is causing many consumers to remain cautious about making major purchases," said Burkl. "This further dampens hopes for a robust recovery in consumer sentiment before the end of the year," added Burkl.

After rising for five consecutive months, income prospects of consumers suffered a severe setback in August largely due to fear of job losses. The corresponding index dropped 11.1 points to 4.1, the lowest since last March.

Moreover, ongoing uncertainty about consumer prices also weighed on sentiment. The geopolitical situation and the US government's tariff policy are raising concerns that energy prices could increase again.

Economic expectations deteriorated significantly for the second straight month in August. The indicator posted -7.4, the lowest in six months.

The Confederation of British Industry's retail sales gauge for the U.K. increased slightly to -32 in August 2025 from -34 in July, better than market expectations of -33. The latest reading indicated that retail sales volumes declined for the 11th consecutive month. Looking ahead, the outlook for September brightened to -16.

U.S. Economic News

The Energy Information Administration is due to release its report on crude oil inventories in the week ended August 22nd at 10:30 am ET. Crude oil inventories are expected to decrease by 2.0 million barrels after tumbling by 6.0 million barrels in the previous week.

At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month's auction of $70 billion worth of five-year notes.