Driven by the exceptional performance of growth stocks, S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures witnessed a notable increase on Wednesday. Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturer, led the surge with a remarkable 9.9% premarket jump, buoyed by its announcement of plans to introduce new, affordable models. The positive momentum extended to other EV stocks, including Lucid Group, Nikola, and Nio, which experienced gains ranging from 1.2% to 3.7%. The overall growth stock sector witnessed an uptick, with Amazon.com, Microsoft, and Nvidia posting gains between 0.3% and 1.6%. Meta Platforms and Snap also joined the rally, advancing 1.7% and 2.1%, respectively, following the US Senate’s passage of a bill that could potentially ban TikTok in the United States if its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, fails to divest the popular short video app. Meta, Microsoft, and Alphabet are among the prominent companies scheduled to release their quarterly results later this week. The corporate earnings season is in full swing, with Planemaker Boeing, defense conglomerate General Dynamics, and drugmaker Biogen expected to report their quarterly earnings before the trading day commences. US equities have seemingly recovered from last week’s slump, which was largely attributed to tensions in the Middle East and a reassessment of rate-cut expectations from the Federal Reserve. As the corporate earnings season gathers momentum, adjusted blended earnings are estimated to show a 6% year-on-year growth for the quarter, according to data from LSEG. “The substantial volume of company results this week provides investors with a broader focus beyond purely macro events, leading to enhanced market vitality,” commented Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. Market participants eagerly await the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index reading for March, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, scheduled for release on Friday, as they seek clarity on the central bank’s potential interest rate cuts this year. Money markets currently anticipate around 41 basis points of cuts this year, a significant decrease from the approximately 150 bps anticipated at the start of the year, as per LSEG data. The durable goods data for March is also slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. At 5:30 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis indicated a slight dip of 7 points or 0.02%, while S&P 500 e-minis signaled a gain of 5.75 points or 0.11%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis pointed towards a rise of 83.5 points or 0.47%. Visa posted impressive second-quarter results that exceeded Wall Street estimates, contributing to a 2.8% premarket increase in its stock price, demonstrating consumer resilience amidst concerns of an economic slowdown. Texas Instruments also experienced a significant 7.3% premarket gain after the chipmaker projected second-quarter revenue above analysts’ forecasts, indicating a surge in demand for its analog semiconductors. The positive sentiment spread to other chip stocks, with Arm Holdings, Micron Technology, and Advanced Micro Devices rising between 1.4% and 3.6%.
S&P 500 and Nasdaq Futures Rise on Growth Stocks Momentum
