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Exchange-Traded Funds Lower, Equity Futures Mixed Pre-Bell Thursday as Investors Weigh Economic Data

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The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 0.4%, and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) fell by 1.2% in Thursday's premarket activity, as investors weighed economic data amid corporate earnings.

US stock futures were mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.5%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gaining 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 1.3% before the start of regular trading.

US employers announced 97,006 planned job cuts in May, the highest total for the month since 2020, driven largely by reductions in the technology sector, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday.

US initial jobless claims rose to 225,000, above expectations of 215,000 and up from 212,000 in the prior week.

US nonfarm productivity growth for the first quarter was revised down to an annualized rate of 0.3% from a preliminary estimate of 0.8%, falling short of expectations for a 0.4% increase, while unit labor cost growth was revised down to 1.8% from 2.3%, below forecasts of a 2.4% gain.

Weekly natural gas stocks are due to be released at 10:30 am ET.

Federal Reserve Richmond President Thomas Barkin and San Francisco President Mary Daly are slated to speak on Thursday.

In premarket action, bitcoin was down by 4.6%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 4.4% lower, Ether ETF (EETH) retreated 3.5%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) declined by 3%.

Power Play:

Consumer

The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was up 1.5%, and the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) gained 1.4%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) was 0.8% higher. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) advanced by 0.5%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was down 0.5%.

LGI Homes (LGIH) shares were down more than 4% pre-bell after falling 5% at the prior close. The company said late Wednesday that it closed 498 homes in May, compared with 416 homes a year earlier.

Winners and Losers:

Health Care

The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) advanced 1.5%, the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was up 1.2%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was flat. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 1% higher.

BrightSpring Health Services (BTSG) stock was down more than 3% premarket after the company said late Wednesday it has priced a secondary offering by certain shareholders of 15 million shares at $58.75 per share.

Industrial

The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) advanced 0.8%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was flat and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was up 1%.

X-Energy (XE) stock was down more than 3% before the opening bell after the company reported a wider Q1 net loss.

Technology

The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) retreated 2.3%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 1.6% lower, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was down 2.7%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) fell by 3.8%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) declined by 4.3%.

Accenture (ACN) shares were up more than 2% in premarket activity after the company agreed to a deal to embed AI and digital technologies in the operations of Tokyo Electric Power subsidiary TEPCO Solution Advance.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) gained 0.1%, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) was down by 0.7%.

Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE) stock was up more than 1% before the opening bell after the company said it has begun producing renewable natural gas at its East Valley Dairy facility in Jerome, Idaho, its eighth dairy RNG project.

Financial

The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) advanced 1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 2.8%, while its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), was 3% lower.

Marsh & McLennan (MRSH) shares were up more than 1% pre-bell after the insurance broker and certain units signed a new $4.25 billion multi-currency unsecured five-year revolving credit facility with Citibank (C).

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated by 3.7% to $92.46 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 1.2% to $3.25 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) fell by 3.9%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 1.1% higher.

Gold futures for July gained by 1.6% to $4,539.90 an ounce on the Comex. Silver futures advanced by 1.5% to $74.77 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was up by 1.1%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) increased by 1.3%.

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Market Chatter: Russian Deputy PM Acknowledges Crude Oil Production Dip

Russian oil production has fallen since the start of 2026, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday, attributing the decline to unplanned refinery maintenance, Reuters reported.The comments are the first official acknowledgement of a decline in output this year, the article said.Russia, the world's No. 3 oil producer, ceased publication of oil production data in April 2023, a little more than a year after the start of its full-scale invasion of its neighbor, Ukraine.Novak did not provide further details on the refinery maintenance, but Ukraine has intensified attacks on Russian refineries this year, causing fires and damage."Current production is indeed somewhat lower than it was at the beginning of the year, Novak told reporters at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, the article said."This is due to the fact that a number of our oil refineries are currently undergoing unscheduled maintenance.""Naturally, we are utilising our export infrastructure to its maximum capacity. As the refineries return to full operational mode, production will increase and return to its previous levels," he said.Hours before the Economic Forum event opened, Ukraine carried out drone strikes near St. Petersburg, hitting the oil terminal and naval base in the town of Kronstadt, the BBC reported.International Energy Agency data puts Russian crude oil output in April at 8.8 million barrels per day, down about 460,000 bpd from a year earlier, the story said.Commenting on the departure of the UAE from the OPEC+ group, Novak said the remaining members continued to play an important role in the market."In any case, OPEC and our agreements, which have proven their effectiveness, help smooth fluctuations and volatility in global markets," he said, according to the article.(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.)

Commodities

Trafigura Warns of Oil Market at Inflection Point Amid Ongoing Energy Crisis

Global commodity trading giant Trafigura on Thursday said while oil prices have remained relatively muted given the magnitude of the ongoing energy crisis, we have reached an inflection point.Restoring production and shipping flows to pre-conflict levels after a potential peace deal between Iran and US is likely to take months, with supply deficit situation expected to continue, said Trafigura, which published its earnings for the six months period ended March 31.Commercial inventories in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development nations and gasoline stockpiles in the US were declining at a rapid pace and there weren't enough replacements to meet demand. A prolonged conflict and restrictions on shipping flows could result in severe and historic challenges, Trafigura said."The knock-on impacts on other markets have been relatively limited so far, but we are starting to get signs of stress emerging, particularly across Asian markets."According to Trafigura, elevated inventories at the beginning of the year, floating cargoes, coordinated strategic petroleum reserve releases, and demand destruction across Asia and Africa were among the factors that limited the spike in oil prices."The conflict also started during the "shoulder season" between winter and summer and so fell between peak diesel demand and peak gasoline/jet fuel demand. That in turn allowed refiners to focus production on diesel and jet fuel, essentially borrowing time by drawing down gasoline inventories instead," it said in its earnings presentation.However, while these factors have offered some temporary relief, they are not a solution, the trading giant said.Trafigura estimated daily oil supply losses due to the Iran war amounted to about 14 million barrels per day versus the pre conflict levels, with cumulative losses of about 1.1 billion barrels of oil.Trafigura, which supported the oil release from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserves, reported total traded volumes of oil and petroleum products including natural gas and liquefied natural gas, of about 8.7 million barrels per day for the six months period ended March 31, up 21% from the corresponding year-ago period.The rise was due to an increase in exports from key regions boosted by strong global demand, Trafigura said, adding that its energy segment too benefitted due to robust demand for its supply chain and logistics services."We have continued to invest in our shipping fleet, including the largest fleet of oil tankers in the industry. This scale gives us the flexibility to respond swiftly and effectively to market disruptions and to serve third-party customers as well as our own trading operations," it added.

Commodities

Canada's Large Wind-to-Hydrogen Project Reportedly Wins Conditional Environmental Clearance

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