Stock Market Update

The S&P 500 futures are down five points and are trading 0.1% below fair value, the Nasdaq 100 futures are down 20 point and are trading 0.5% below fair value, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are down 33 points and are trading 0.1% below fair value.

Contracts linked to the S&P 500, Dow industrials, and Nasdaq 100 are lower amid rising rates. The 10-yr yield is at 4.72%, four basis points higher than yesterday's settlement and 12 basis points higher for the week. Losses in some mega cap names have also contributed to the negative bias. 

As a reminder, the NYSE is closed tomorrow in observance of the National Day of Mourning for former President Jimmy Carter.

There's a slate of economic data to get through today, including the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, which dropped 3.7%. Other data include:

• 8:15 ET: December ADP Employment Change (Briefing.com consensus 131,000; prior 146,000)
• 8:30 ET: Weekly Initial Claims (Briefing.com consensus 218,000; prior 211,000) and Continuing Claims (prior 1.844 mln)
• 10:00 ET: November Wholesale Inventories (Briefing.com consensus -0.2%; prior 0.2%)
• 10:30 ET: Weekly crude oil inventories (prior -1.18 mln)
• 12:00 ET: Weekly natural gas inventories (prior -116 bcf)
• 15:00 ET: November Consumer Credit (Briefing.com consensus $9.1 bln; prior $19.2 bln)

In corporate news:

• Cal-Maine Foods (CALM 109.99, +6.31, +6.1%): beats by $0.42, beats on revs (two estimates)
• Kura Sushi (KRUS 104.18, +2.00, +2.0%): beats by $0.13, beats on revs; Issues downside FY25 revenue guidance
• Albertsons (ACI 20.50, +0.78, +4.0%): beats by $0.05, reports revs in-line; guides FY25 EPS in-line; increases quarterly common stock dividend to $0.15/share from $0.12/share
• Meta (META 614.00, -3.89, -0.6%): employees are concerned about decision to end fact-checking, according to CNBC
• Nvidia (NVDA 140.68, +0.54, +0.4%): CEO Jensen Huang says it will be 15 years before there will be "useful" quantum computers, according to Bloomberg

Reviewing overnight developments:

• Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region had a mixed showing on Wednesday. Japan's Nikkei: -0.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng: -0.9%, China's Shanghai Composite: UNCH, India's Sensex: -0.1%, South Korea's Kospi: +1.2%, Australia's ASX All Ordinaries: +0.7%.
  • In economic data:
    • Japan's December Household Confidence 36.2 (expected 36.6; last 36.4)
    • South Korea's November Current Account $9.30 bln (last $9.78 bln)
    • Australia's November CPI Indicator 2.30% yr/yr (expected 2.20%; last 2.10%)
  • In news:
    • Hong Kong's Hang Seng (-0.9%) felt continued pressure from technology stocks while South Korea's KOSPI (+1.2%) bounced off its 50-day moving average.
    • Chinese officials announced an expansion of a trade-in program to entice increased spending from households, but the announcement was deemed a disappointment.
    • HSBC lowered its forecast for China's 10-yr yield from 1.80% to 1.20%, roughly 40 basis points below the current level.
    • Shanghai Securities News speculated about forceful monetary policy moves being on the horizon.
    • Former Bank of Japan Governor Kuroda said that more rate hikes will be made in the coming years.
    • Fast Retailing announced higher wages for new hires and current full-time workers.
• Major European indices trade in the red with France's CAC (-1.1%) lagging amid broad-based weakness. STOXX Europe 600: -0.2%, Germany's DAX: -0.3%, U.K.'s FTSE 100: -0.3%, France's CAC 40: -1.1%, Italy's FTSE MIB: -0.1%, Spain's IBEX 35: -0.7%.
  • In economic data:
    • Eurozone's December Business and Consumer Survey 93.7 (expected 95.6; last 95.6). November PPI 1.6% m/m (expected 1.5%; last 0.4%); -1.2% yr/yr (expected -1.3%; last -3.3%)
    • Germany's November Retail Sales -0.6% m/m (expected 0.5%; last -0.3%); 2.5% yr/yr (expected 1.9%; last 5.1%). November Factory Orders -5.4% m/m (expected -0.3%; last -1.5%)
    • France's December Consumer Confidence 89, as expected (last 90). November trade deficit EUR7.1 bln (expected deficit of EUR7.0 bln; last deficit of EUR7.5 bln). November Current Account deficit EUR1.7 bln (last deficit of EUR1.9 bln)
  • In news:
    • The British pound is nearing a 14-month low against the dollar while Gilt yields are sharply higher with the 10-yr yield (4.858%) on the verge of overtaking its high from 2023 (4.905%) amid growing worries about stagflation.
    • A continued rise in borrowing costs would force the British government to implement more tax hikes or cut spending.
    • Germany reported disappointing Retail Sales for November on a month-over-month basis, though the year-over-year reading beat estimates.