International
Tech Optimism Lifts Wall Street Pre-Bell; Asia Mixed, Europe Off
Wall Street futures pointed modestly higher pre-bell Wednesday after a strong Seagate Technology (STX) earnings report, released overnight, signaled AI demand boom for data storage tech continues.In the futures, the S&P 500 rose 0.1%, the Nasdaq inclined 0.3% and the Dow Jones was marginally up.Seagate Technology shares traded up 17.6% pre-bell after the data storage device maker reported better-than-expected fiscal Q3 non-GAAP EPS and revenue, and issued upbeat guidance late Tuesday.Peer data storage enterprises also gained pre-bell, including Western Digital (WDC), up 10.7%, and SanDisk (SNDK), up 7.3%.Tech titans Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon.com (AMZN) and Meta Platforms (META) are slated to report earnings after-bell.Traders also await the 2 pm ET rate announcement from the Federal Reserve, although the CME Group Fedwatch tool predicts a 100% chance the central bank will hold steady. Chair Jerome Powell's 2:30 pm press conference will be parsed for clues to Fed mood.Asian exchanges were mixed overnight, with Seoul's KOSPI Index striking a fresh all-time zenith. European bourses edged lower midday on the continent.On the economic calendar at 8:30 am ET is the durable goods orders bulletin for March, the housing starts and building permits bulletins for March, the international trade in goods release for March, and the retail and wholesale inventories reports for March.The weekly EIA petroleum status report posts at 10:30 am.The Atlanta Federal Reserve Survey of Business Uncertainty for April logs at 11 am.In premarket action, Bitcoin traded at $77,846, West Texas Intermediate crude oil traded up 3.5% at $103.40, and 10-year US Treasuries offered 4.36%. Spot gold commanded $4,567 an ounce.
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