By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
Mylan, Orbitz to report ahead of the bell
Mylan, Orbitz to report ahead of the bell
MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Stock futures moved modestly higher on
Thursday, but overall direction could be up in the air until the
market learns the outcome of a European Central Bank meeting, while
weekly jobless claims may also provide a little focus.
Mylan Inc. (MYL) and Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (OWW) will report
ahead of the opening bell.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4) rose 22
points to 16,417, while the S&P 500 index (SPU4) gained 4.2
points to 1,919.10. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index (NDU4) tacked
on 4 points to 3,873.25.
Weekly jobless claims data will be released at 8:30 a.m. Eastern
Time. Economists polled by MarketWatch expect initial jobless
claims to edge up to 305,000 in the seven days ended Aug. 2, from
302,000 in the prior week. If claims stay low, that will be taken
by some as a sign that companies plan to hire modestly and avoid
big layoffs.
At 3 p.m. Eastern Time, the Federal Reserve will report on
consumer credit for June.
European questions
Investors are likely to be a bit hesitant until the results of
an ECB meeting. Wall Street put on a lackluster performance on
Wednesday, with the S&P 500 index (SPX) finishing flat at
1,920.23 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) inched up 0.1%
to 16,443.34. Also: A big week for IPOs could have sparked last
week's S&P selloff.
The ECB isn't expected to make any major changes in policy, but
analysts will be looking for President Mario Draghi to use his
monthly news conference to elaborate on the rate cuts of two months
ago. The central bank's decision on interest rates is scheduled for
7:45 a.m. Eastern Time, with the press conference at 8:30 a.m.
Eastern. See ECB preview: The charts that should keep Mario Draghi
up at night
The Q&A session is expected to be dominated by questions
about the impact of sanctions on Russia to the euro zone, as well
as worrying developments in some of the region's biggest economies,
such as Germany. Adidas AG posted a 16% profit drop and said it
won't meet its 2015 profit outlook.
Russian President Vladimir Putin fired back at Western sanctions
on Wednesday, ordering bans on imports of food and other products
from countries that imposed the restrictions.
European stocks had trouble getting started, with the main Stoxx
600 index flat. In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index tumbled 1.3%
and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell to its lowest settlement in
nearly two weeks as casino shares dropped.
Corporate front
Shares of Keurig Green Mountain Inc.(GMCR) may follow up a
late-session loss with more downside in premarket trading. The
coffee company reported quarterly sales below estimates.
Priceline Group Inc.(PCLN) said after the close of markets on
Wednesday that it plans to take a $500 million stake in Ctrip.com
International Ltd. (CTRP), China's largest online travel company.
The two companies already have a commercial agreement.
In other markets, gold prices (GCU4) pulled back but held above
the $1,300-an-ounce level, while oil (CLU4) eased off and the
dollar (DXY) inched higher.
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