Exchange-Traded Funds Lower, Equity Futures Mixed Pre-Bell Thursday as Investors Weigh Economic Data
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:ConsumerThe 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 CareThe 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.IndustrialThe 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.TechnologyThe 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.EnergyThe 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.FinancialThe 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).CommoditiesFront-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%.