Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures stabilized Wednesday after a series of volatile sessions, ahead of the release of more key labor market data.
At 06:40 ET (10:40 GMT), Dow Jones Futures fell 77 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 Futures dropped 8 points, or 0.2%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 10 points, or 0.1%.
The main Wall Street indices suffered a volatile session on Wednesday, with the benchmarks ending lower despite a strong start to the day as a rebound from two and three-month lows largely stalled.
The S&P 500 fell 0.8%, the NASDAQ Composite fell 1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.6%.
All three indexes were nursing steep losses over the past few weeks, with the Nasdaq having entered correction territory on Monday.
Losses were sparked by increasing fears of a recession, following a slew of weak readings on the labor market and business activity.
Jobless claims due
With this in mind, the macro spotlight is squarely on the weekly jobless claims figures later in the day, with economists expecting initial jobless claims to total 241,000 last week, a small reduction from the prior week’s 249,000.
That release showed the number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased to an 11-month high last week, adding to fears that the labor market was cooling quickly.
JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) has raised the odds of a U.S. recession by the end of this year to 35% from 25%, citing easing labor market pressures.
Comments from Richmod Fed President Thomas Barkin will also be studied Thursday for any clues on the U.S. central bank's next move.
Earnings continue to emerge
There are more earnings to digest Thursday, including from drugmaker Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) and fashion retailer Under Armour (NYSE:UAA).
Additionally, Bumble (NASDAQ:BMBL) stock slumped premarket after the online dating agency cut its annual revenue growth forecast, sparking worries about its growth plans.
Warner Bros Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) stock fell sharply premarket after the entertainment giant reported a quarterly net loss of $10 billion, announcing it has written down the value of its traditional television networks by $9.1 billion, a dramatic recognition of how fast streaming is eroding the cable business model.
Crude hit by weak Chinese data
Crude prices retreated Thursday, on course to end a two-day winning streak, as dismal economic data from top oil importer China reignited concerns surrounding global demand.
By 06:40 ET, the U.S. crude futures (WTI) dropped 0.2% to $75.09 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 0.3% to $78.11 a barrel.
Data released earlier Thursday showed China imported around 10 million barrels of oil in July, down 12% from June and 3% lower than the same period last year.
Concerns over Chinese growth, coupled with fears of a U.S. recession, have weighed heavily on oil prices in recent sessions.
Both benchmarks had gained around 3% over the last two sessions, bouncing off near-2024 lows, helped by the simmering tensions in the Middle East.
Additionally, crude inventories in the United States, the world's largest oil consumer, fell 3.7 million barrels, data showed, marking a sixth straight weekly decline to six-month lows.
(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)
This content was originally published on Investing.com
