Benzinga | Aug 4, 2021 06:03AM EDT

A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Mostly lower Ahead Of General Motors Earnings

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mostly lower in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones surged around 280 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) CVS Health Corp (NYSE:CVS), McKesson Corporation (NYSE:MCK) and AmerisourceBergen Corporation (NYSE:ABC).

The ADP national employment report for July is scheduled for release at 8:15 a.m. ET, while US Services Purchasing Managers' Index for July will be released at 9:45 a.m. ET. The ISM's services index for July is scheduled for release at 10:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida is set to speak at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 40 points to 34,958.00 while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 3.25 points to 4,411.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 10.50 points to 15,056.75.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 35,238,140 with around 614,290 deaths. India reported a total of at least 31,769,130 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 19,985,810 cases.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.5% to trade at $72.74 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.2% to trade at $70.72 a barrel. U.S. crude inventories fell around 879,000 barrels for the week ended July 30, versus a gain of 0.81 million barrels in the previous week, the API said Tuesday. The Energy Information Administration's weekly report on petroleum inventories in the U.S. will be released at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today. The Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.1% and STOXX Europe 600 Index gained 0.4%. The French CAC 40 Index rose 0.4%, London's FTSE 100 rose 0.3% while German DAX 30 gained 0.5%. The IHS Markit Eurozone services PMI rose to 59.8 in July from June's final reading of 58.3. Eurozone's composite PMI climbed to 60.2 in July from June's reading of 59.5. German services PMI rose to 61.8 in July from a final reading of 57.5 in the previous month, while Italy's services PMI climbed to 58 in July from 56.7. Spanish services PMI declined to 61.9 in July from 62.5 in June.

Asian markets traded mostly lower today. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.21%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 0.92%, while China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.85%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% and India's BSE Sensex rose 1%. Indian services PMI rose to 45.4 in July from 41.2 in the prior month. The Caixin China general services PMI rose to 54.9 in July from a 14-month low level of 50.3 a month ago. Retail sales in Australia fell 1.8% in June, while services PMI dipped to a 14-month low of 44.2 in July. Japan's services PMI fell to 47.4 in July from a final reading of 48.0 in June.

Broker Recommendation

JP Morgan downgraded Zymergen Inc. (NASDAQ:ZY) from Overweight to Neutral and announced a $12 price target.

Zymergen shares fell 69% to $10.80 in pre-market trading.

Check out other major ratings here



Breaking News * Herbalife Nutrition Ltd (NYSE:HLF) reported upbeat earnings for its second quarter on Tuesday. The company said it expects FY21 adjusted earnings of $4.70 to $5.10 per share.

* Paycom Software (NASDAQ:PAYC) reported better-than-expected results for its second quarter on Tuesday.

* The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is looking to grant full approval to the Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE)- BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX) COVID-19 vaccine by early September, the New York Times reported Tuesday, citing people involved in the effort.

* United Therapeutics Corporation (NASDAQ:UTHR) reported upbeat results for its second quarter.

Check out other breaking news here