Wall Street Might Open Moderately Lower

Reports on manufacturing activity and construction spending might be the focus on Friday, prior to the long weekend.

Early signs from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might open moderately lower.

Asian shares finished lower, while European shares are trading on a negative note.

As of 7.45 am ET, the Dow futures were down 138.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were declining 18.50 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were losing 220 points.

The U.S. major averages finished lower on Thursday. The Dow closed down 253.88 points or 0.8 percent at 30,775.43. The Nasdaq tumbled 149.16 points or 1.3 percent to 11,028.74, while the S&P 500 slumped 33.45 points or 0.9 percent to 3,785.38.

On the economic front, the Purchasing Managers’ Manufacturing Index or PMI will be issued at 9.45 am ET.

Institute for Supply Management or ISM’s Manufacturing Index for June will be released at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is 55.0, while it was up 56.1 in May.

The Commerce Department’s Construction Spending for May is scheduled at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is for an increase of 0.5 percent, while it was up 0.2 percent in the prior month.

The Baker Hughes North American rig count for the week will be revealed at 1.00 pm ET. In the prior week, the North America Rig Count was 907 and the U.S. Rig Count was 753.

Asian stocks ended broadly lower on Friday. China’s Shanghai Composite index closed 0.32 percent lower at 3,387.64.

Markets in Hong Kong were closed for a holiday.

Japanese shares ended at a near two-week low on Friday. The Nikkei average fell 1.73 percent to 25,935.62. The broader Topix index closed 1.38 percent lower at 1,845.04.

Australian markets ended modestly lower. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.43 percent to 6,539.90. The broader All Ordinaries index closed 0.39 percent lower at 6,720.40.

European shares are trading down. Among the major indexes in the region, the CAC 40 Index of France is losing 0.87 points or 0.01 percent. The German DAX is sliding 11.77 points or 0.09 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is declining 14.70 points or 0.21 percent.

The Swiss Market Index is declining 54.47 points or 0.50 percent.

The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is down 0.32 percent.

Source: Read Full Article