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Exchange-Traded Funds, Equity Futures Advance Pre-Bell Wednesday Ahead of Nvidia Earnings Report

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The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.4% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.7% higher in Wednesday's premarket activity, ahead of the release of Nvidia's (NVDA) latest financial results.

US stock futures were also higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.3%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.6% before the start of regular trading.

Earlier Wednesday, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported that mortgage applications declined in the week ended May 15 due to a seven-week high in mortgage rates.

The weekly petroleum stocks data will be released at 10:30 am ET.

The minutes of the April 28-29 Federal Open Market Committee meeting will be released at 2 pm ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 0.8%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.8% higher, Ether ETF (EETH) advanced 0.8%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was flat.

Power Play:

Health Care

The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) retreated 0.03%, the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was up 0.3%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) gained 0.3%. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.3% higher.

ImmunityBio's (IBRX) stock was up more than 8% premarket after the company said its supplemental biologics license application for Anktiva in combination with Bacillus Calmette-Guerin in patients with bladder cancer with papillary disease has been accepted for review by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Winners and Losers:

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was down 0.8%, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) retreated by 0.5%.

Dorian LPG (LPG) stock was up more than 5% before Wednesday's opening bell after the company reported higher fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue.

Financial

The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) advanced 0.2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 0.6%, while its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), was 0.7% lower.

CorVel (CRVL) shares were up more than 1% pre-bell after the company reported higher fiscal Q4 earnings and revenue.

Industrial

The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) advanced 0.5%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was down 0.1%, and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) retreated 0.2%.

Southwest Airlines (LUV) stock was up more than 1% before the opening bell after Business Standard reported that the company opened a Global Innovation Centre in Hyderabad through its wholly owned subsidiary, Southwest Airlines India, as the U.S. carrier expands its global technology, engineering, and business operations capabilities.

Technology

The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) advanced by 0.9%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 1% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 0.6%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) increased by 1.8%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) rose by 2%.

Nvidia shares were up more than 1% in premarket activity ahead of the release of its quarterly financial results. The company will open its first research center in Singapore, focused on embodied AI and improving AI infrastructure efficiency, according to multiple media reports.

Consumer

The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was up 0.2% and the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) was down 0.9%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) retreated 0.01%. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) gained 0.5%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) rose by 0.5%.

Tesla (TSLA) shares were up more than 1% pre-bell. Recruitment notices on the electric vehicle maker's website showed it is hiring people for driver-assistance roles in China.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated by 0.8% to $107.77 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was down 0.2% at $3.11 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) decreased by 2.2%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.1% lower.

Gold futures for May retreated by 0.3% to $4,498.10 an ounce on the Comex. Silver futures rose 1.2% to $76.08 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was up by 0.4%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) rose by 2.3%.

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Commodities

DOE-Backed NLR Launches Agora Grid Test Bed for Data Centers

The National Laboratory of the Rockies launched Agora, a new grid integration platform designed to help data centers support power reliability, it said in a Tuesday statement.The US Department of Energy-backed project replicates the technical complexity of large-scale data center interconnections and marks the first dedicated large-load grid integration test bed across the national laboratory system, the NLR said.NLR developed Agora with support from the DOE's Office of Electricity and industry partners to address growing electricity demand from artificial intelligence and data centers."We built a 20th-century grid - but today we serve a 21st-century, data-driven, AI-enabled economy," Katie Jereza, assistant secretary at DOE's Office of Electricity, said.The laboratory said most data centers currently operate only as large electricity consumers, while utilities have limited visibility into whether facilities can reduce or shift power use during grid stress events.NLR said flexible operations at large facilities such as data centers could lower electricity costs and help utilities avoid rolling blackouts during periods of peak demand.Major industry partners including Schneider Electric, Compass Datacenters and Verrus are already using Agora to test approaches for integrating large electricity loads into the grid."As data centers become one of the fastest-growing sources of electricity demand in the US, utilities are being asked to manage large loads at a scale and speed the grid was not originally designed for," Jaquelin Cochran of NLR said.NLR said Agora creates a plug-and-play environment that brings together utilities, technology providers, researchers and data center developers to coordinate large-load grid integration strategies.Agora will operate alongside other DOE-funded grid management systems under the Advanced Research on Integrated Energy Systems platform focused on reliable, secure and affordable energy technologies.

Commodities

US Natural Gas Update: Hits Eight-Week High on Eastern Heatwave Demand

US natural gas futures extended gains in after-hours trading on Tuesday, rising for a fifth straight session and pushing benchmark prices to an eight-week high as an early-season heatwave across the eastern US fueled expectations of stronger power-sector demand.The front-month Henry Hub contract and the continuous contract each rose by 3.04% to $3.116 per million British thermal units.Soaring temperatures across the East Coast were sharply increasing air-conditioning demand and lifting gas-fired power burn. Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group, said temperatures along the East Coast could run 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit above seasonal norms, threatening or breaking more than 150 temperature records in major cities. "Highs in the 80s and 90s (with triple-digit heat possible in parts of the South and Texas) will spike air-conditioning use and power burn," Flynn said.Weather forecasters said the heatwave in the US Northeast was expected to ease by Thursday. Barchart, citing The Commodity Weather Group, said forecasts had shifted cooler, with mostly normal seasonal weather expected across much of the US between May 24-28.Still, near-term demand remained firm. Gelber & Associates said Tuesday's power burn was tracking near 38.9 billion cubic feet per day, "enough to keep weather sensitivity in the front of the market." Barchart, citing BNEF data, said total Lower 48 gas demand on Tuesday was estimated at 72.2 Bcf/d, up 2.3 Bcf/d from overnight levels and 5.5% higher than a year earlier.Despite stronger consumption, analysts noted the market remained comfortably supplied. Gelber said US dry gas production was estimated at 108.6 Bcf/d, while Canadian imports were running at 4.7 Bcf/d. "The market is not short of supply, but it is becoming more willing to reward heat when power burns are carrying more of the domestic load," the firm said.Gains were capped by weaker LNG feedgas demand as seasonal maintenance at US export facilities reduced feedgas flows to a four-month low. Estimated net gas flows to US LNG export terminals on Tuesday fell by 2.3 Bcf/d to 15.6 Bcf/d, down 15.3% from levels seen a week earlier."If the warmer turn verifies, Henry Hub should keep defending the $3 handle because the balance is finally getting meaningful summer demand from power," Gelber said. "If feedgas stays soft and the cooler front-end limits immediate CDD [cooling demand day] growth, the rally could pause even with prices still technically supported above $3."

Commodities

Brazil Boosts Soy Oil Exports Amid Record Crop and Weak Local Demand, Bloomberg Analysis Says

Brazil's soy oil exports climbed 47% through April as delayed biodiesel policy changes increased cheap overseas supplies, according to a Bloomberg analysis on Tuesday.A record soybean harvest and heavy crushing activity boosted soy oil production across Brazil, while slower domestic biofuel demand pushed more supplies into export markets, the analysis said.Chicago soy oil futures have rallied nearly 56% this year, although prices at Brazil's Paranagua port have lagged, widening discounts to the lowest levels since 2023, the analysis said, citing data from Commodity3.Lower prices helped lift Brazil's soy oil exports to the second-highest level in nearly 20 years.Brazil still blends 15% biodiesel into diesel fuel after authorities postponed a planned increase to 16% while additional technical testing continues.Strong soybean supplies kept crushing plants operating at high levels as exporters increased vegetable oil shipments to India, Bangladesh, and North Africa, according to the analysis.Joao Paes de Almeida, founder of advisory firm J.Pacta, said abundant soybean supplies will likely keep Brazilian soy oil prices below Chicago benchmarks unless the country raises biodiesel blending mandates.The report said Argentina has also faced unusually large soy oil discounts as record South American soybean supplies continue weighing on regional vegetable oil prices.