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Exchange-Traded Funds, Equity Futures Mixed Pre-Bell Wednesday Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions

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The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.03%, and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) retreated 0.2% in Wednesday's premarket activity, as markets traded mixed amid escalating US-Iran tensions.

US stock futures were also mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.1%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 0.1% before the start of regular trading.

Mortgage applications rebounded by 0.8% in the week ended Aug. 28 despite a further increase in average 30-year fixed mortgage rates, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday.

ADP's monthly measure of private payrolls showed a 38,000 increase in August, well below expectations compiled by Bloomberg as of 7:45 am ET for an increase of 47,000 after a 46,000 increase in July.

Factory orders data for July will be released at 10:00 am ET, followed by the weekly petroleum stocks data at 10:30 am ET.

The Fed's Beige Book, a compilation of economic and business reports from the 12 regional Fed branches, posts at 2 pm ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was down by 0.6%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.2% lower, Ether ETF (EETH) retreated 1.2%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was flat.

Power Play:

Industrial

The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) advanced 0.5%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was up 0.8%, and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.

FuelCell Energy (FCEL) stock was down more than 12% before the opening bell after the company reported a wider-than-expected fiscal Q3 adjusted loss.

Winners and Losers:

Technology

The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) retreated 0.1%, the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.8% lower, and the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) lost 0.2%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) decreased by 0.1%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) fell by 0.5%.

Dell Technologies (DELL) shares were up 8% after the company posted higher fiscal Q2 adjusted earnings and revenue in addition to lifting its full-year guidance.

Financial

The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) advanced 0.3%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 1%, while its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), was 0.9% lower.

Manulife Financial (MFC) shares traded down 4% in early-hours activity after the company said late Tuesday it priced a $750 million public offering in the US of 6.146% subordinated notes due 2041.

Consumer

The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was up 0.2%, the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) gained 0.1%, and the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) advanced 0.03%. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) was 0.3% higher. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was down 0.4%.

Nio (NIO) shares were down more than 3% pre-bell after JPMorgan downgraded the company to neutral from overweight.

Health Care

The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) advanced 0.5%, the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was down 0.8%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.1% higher.

UniQure (QURE) stock was up 3% premarket after the company submitted a Biologics License Application to the US Food and Drug Administration to request accelerated approval of ifezuntirgene inilparvovec, or AMT-130, its investigational gene therapy for Huntington's disease.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was down 0.2%, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) was 0.5% lower.

BP (BP) stock was down more than 1% before market open after the company appointed Ian Tyler as board chair.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down by 0.8% to $89.53 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 1.1% at $2.94 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) lost 1.2%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.3% lower.

Gold futures for November were down by 0.4% to $4,379.40 an ounce on the Comex. Silver futures retreated 0.6% to $64.96 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) increased 0.1%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 0.4% higher.

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Commodities

Market Chatter: Refineries to Maintain East Texas Output as Tropical Storm Edouard Nears

As Tropical Storm Edouard approaches the US Gulf Coast, Motiva, Exxon Mobil (XOM) and TotalEnergies (TTE) plan to maintain scheduled production at their East Texas refineries, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with operations.Exxon Mobil's Beaumont and TotalEnergies' Port Arthur refineries sent contractors home Tuesday, while maintaining normal staffing levels among their own employees, the sources said.Motiva, Exxon Mobil and TotalEnergies did not immediately reply to' request for comment.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)

$TTE$XOM
Commodities

US Natural Gas Update: Futures Rebound in Late Trade on Hotter Weather, Stronger LNG Demand

US natural gas prices rebounded in after-hours trade into positive territory on Tuesday as weather forecasts called for hotter-than-normal temperatures through the first half of September and restored LNG feedgas demand after the conclusion of maintenance at export facilities.The front-month Henry Hub price and the continuous contract both rose by 0.37% to $2.946 per million British thermal units.The October 2026 contract slipped 3 cents to settle at $2.90/MMBtu on Tuesday, Pinebrook Energy Advisors' Energy Buyers' Guide said. It said prices rebounded later on revised forecasts predicting widespread above-normal temperatures over the next several days. That should keep power-generation demand elevated and limit storage injections in the near term, it said.NatGasWeather.com said it was calling for very strong demand over the next seven days. It said the southern and eastern US will be hot to very hot, w/highs in the 90s to 100s degrees Fahrenheit, including many major East Coast cities.However, Vaisala predicted temperatures would fall below normal in the populous Northeast at the beginning of this weekend, Barchart said.High temperatures last week kept power burn at a high level. Celsius Energy reported that the average powerburn for the week ended Aug. 30 was 46.3 Bcf/d, 3.8 Bcf/d above the same period a year ago.Meanwhile, production remains quite ample. BNEF put US production on Tuesday at 114 Bcf/d, up 5.5% over the same day last year. Trading Economics said average output in the Lower 48 states reached about 111.5 Bcf/d in August, surpassing July's record of 110.7 Bcf/d.Gelber & Associates said Energy Transfer's Hugh Brinson Pipeline is set to reach its full Phase I capacity on Tuesday. The new system adds 1.5 Bcf/d of Permian takeaway capacity, relieving constraints around Waha and allowing more West Texas supply to reach demand centers and downstream markets across Texas.That increase in deliverability is being treated as an immediate loosening of the broader supply picture, particularly as additional Permian volumes can now move toward Katy, Carthage, and the Gulf Coast.On the export side, NatGasWeather.com said LNG exports have been soft all summer and near to under 18 Bcf most days and aided by Freeport LNG partially offline due to maintenance. But LNG is stronger the past several days and back to near or over 19 Bcf/day as Freeport returns to full service. Stronger LNG aided gains Monday, although natural gas prices are a few cents lower today. Barchart, citing BNEF, said LNG feedgas demand for Tuesday hit 19.5 Bcf/d, up 12% over this time last week.

Commodities

US Power Update: Power Prices Mostly Higher; Natural Gas Holds Largest Generation Share

US wholesale electricity markets were mostly higher on Tuesday afternoon, with Midcontinent Independent System Operator's intraday prices reaching $585.46 per megawatt-hour, according to data from GridStatus.io.Electric Reliability Council of Texas' real-time locational marginal price stood at $28.27/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load reached 49.04 gigawatts, with natural gas making up the largest share of the generation mix at 42.1%.California Independent System Operator's real-time LMP came in at $15.46/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load was negative 0.5 GW, with solar making up the largest share of the generation mix at 71.3%.Southwest Power Pool's real-time LMP was $60.16/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load reached 45.88 GW, while natural gas accounted for the largest portion of the generation mix at 41.4%. Prices reached an intraday peak of $471.67/MWh at 1:50 p.m. ET.PJM's real-time LMP came to $259.89/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load stood at 136.58 GW, with gas representing the largest share of the generation mix at 45.2%. Prices rose to an intraday high of $519.47/MWh at 4:40 p.m. ET.MISO's real-time LMP was $132.63/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load came in at 99.74 GW, with natural gas making up the largest share of the generation mix at 36.3%. Prices climbed to $585.46/MWh at 2:50 p.m. ET.New York Independent System Operator's real-time LMP stood at $35.84/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load reached 21.89 GW, while dual-fuel sources accounted for the largest share of the generation mix at 33.9%.New England Independent System Operator's real-time LMP came in at $37.16/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load was 13.14 GW, with natural gas accounting for the largest share of the generation mix at 52.3%.Independent Electricity System Operator's real-time LMP stood at $47.21/MWh at 4 p.m. ET. Net load reached 20.95 GW, with nuclear providing the largest share of the generation mix at 41.5% at 3:55 p.m. ET.The National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center forecasts temperatures to remain above normal across much of the central and eastern US from Sept. 9 to Sept. 15, with near-normal readings across parts of the West.