By Anora Mahmudova and Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Futures for U.S. stocks trimmed losses
after the weekly jobless claims data showed the number of people
applying for unemployment benefits remains below 300,000 for the
fourth week in a row.
Investors will hear speeches from several Federal Reserve
officials on Thursday, a day after investors sent stocks soaring as
minutes released from the central bank September meetings appeared
to quell any lingering fears that interest rates might be dialed up
in a hurry.
A market strategist pointed to the possibility that investors
might be keen to sell stocks and consolidate gains, a day after
Wednesday's dramatic rally.
"What we're seeing heading into the open is profit-taking from
yesterday's trading where we saw nearly 2% gains, and I think that
was a bit overdone," explained Craig Erlam, market analyst, at
Alpari UK. "We've seen massive rallies off those Fed minutes, which
weren't exactly the most dovish thing we've ever heard and there
was no real change in policy," he added.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJZ4) turned down
36 points, or 0.2%, to 16,867 and those for the S&P 500 (SPZ4)
slipped 2 point to 1,959. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 (NDZ4) fell 3
points to 4,027.
Fed watch: Six U.S. central bankers will be speaking on
Thursday, including Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer and Fed Governor
Daniel Tarullo, who are voting members on the rate-setting
committee this year. Minutes from that committee's September
meeting, released on Wednesday, highlighted concerns by several
members over the medium-term impact of the stronger dollar and
slower growth among some of the U.S.'s major trading partners.
U.S. stocks on Wednesday posted their biggest one-day gains of
the year following the release of those minutes. The Dow Jones
Industrial Average (DJI) rallied 274.83 points, erasing a selloff
of about that much on Tuesday. The S&P 500 (SPX) climbed 33.79
points and the Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) leapt 83.89 points.
Market watchers explained that traders were encouraged by the
Fed "not undermining the strength of the dollar and how it could
hurt the growth of the international firms," said Naeem Aslam,
chief market analyst at AvaTrade, in a Wednesday note. "This was
enough for investors to cheer up and they have renewed their vows
for buying stocks." Need to Know: A call to short chip makers in
the face of a scary triple-top market
On the Fed speakers list:
Weekly jobless claims data showed initial claims edged down by
1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 287,000 in the week ended Oct. 4,
the Labor Department said Thursday. Jobless claims are now 21%
lower compared to one year ago.
Stocks to watch: PepsiCo Inc. (PEP) shares climbed 1.3% before
the opening bell, with the beverage and snack giant reporting
fiscal third-quarter profit and sales that beat expectations.
Alcoa Inc. (AA) shares rose 1.7% ahead of the bell after the
aluminum producer's fiscal third-quarter earnings came in higher
than Wall Street's estimate.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) suppliers have delayed plans to mass produce a
larger-screen tablet to early next year, according to The Wall
Street Journal. Shares in premarket trade rose 1%.
Google Inc.'s (GOOG) tax deal in France is being challenged, The
Wall Street Journal reported.
Other markets: In Asia, Japan's Nikkei Average fell as the yen
strengthened against the greenback. U.K. stocks rose ahead of the
Bank of England's policy statement. Gold prices (GCZ4)surged more
than $21 an ounce and oil futures (CLX4) switched lower.
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