By Tomi Kilgore
U.S. stock futures leaned lower as investors awaited a reading
on private-sector job growth.
European markets slipped ahead of the widely anticipated
European Central Bank meeting on Thursday.
About 90 minutes ahead of the open, Dow Jones Industrial Average
futures fell 11 points, or 0.1%, to 16702. S&P 500 index
futures eased two points, or 0.1%, to 1920 and Nasdaq-100 futures
gave up five points, or 0.2%, to 3726. Changes in stock futures
don't always accurately predict stock moves after the opening
bell.
On Tuesday, the Dow slipped 21 points, or 0.1%, to snap a
three-session win streak, and the S&P 500 eased less than 0.1%,
failing to close at a record for the first time in four
sessions.
Activity remained muted, with overall volume increasing slightly
from the previous session but remaining well below the year-to-date
daily average.
Jim Russell, senior equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth
Management, which manages about $120 billion, said it's difficult
for investors to take a stand ahead of Thursday's ECB meeting and
Friday's jobs report.
"We believe the [jobs] data will continue to show that the labor
market is improving," Mr. Russell said.
"We're in bit of a 'show me' state," he said, as data needs to
be less ambiguous. "The market is looking for definitive signs of
sustainable growth."
"We don't sense that the market is at a peak," Mr. Russell said.
"We believe the upward grind in the market will continue to be the
path forward."
At 8:15 a.m. Eastern, data compiled by Automatic Data Processing
and Moody's Analytics is expected to show that 210,000
private-sector jobs were added in May, down from 220,000 in April.
The ADP report is seen as a preview of the government's February
employment report Friday, which is expected show nonfarm payroll
growth of 210,000.
At 8:30 a.m., the trade deficit is seen increasing slightly to
$40.9 billion. First-quarter productivity is expected to be revised
to show a slightly greater decline than originally reported, while
unit labor costs are seen being revised higher.
After the open, the Institute for Supply Management's
nonmanufacturing composite index, due at 10 a.m., is expected to be
unchanged at 55.2. And at 2 p.m., the Federal Reserve's Beige Book
survey of regional economic activity will be released.
Earlier, the Mortgage Bankers Association said mortgage
applications declined 3.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis in the
latest week.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note inched higher to 2.594%,
after settling at a three-week high of 2.592% late Tuesday.
Gold futures edged up 0.1% to $1,245.30 an ounce, after snapping
a six-session losing streak on Tuesday. Crude-oil futures rose 0.6%
to $103.28 a barrel. The dollar lost some ground against the euro,
but edged higher against the yen.
In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600 eased 0.1% to extend a pullback
from a 6 1/2-year high hit on Monday. Economic data continued to
support expectations that the ECB will introduce new stimulus
measures by either cutting interest rates or boosting liquidity
through asset purchases. Data firm Markit said its composite
purchasing managers index for the euro zone, which measures
activity across both the manufacturing and services sectors, fell
to 53.5 in May from 54 in April.
Meanwhile, a second estimate of first-quarter economic growth
was unchanged at 0.9%, in line with forecasts.
"I think we are at the beginning of a consolidation phase for
European equities. Most of the possible actions of the ECB are
already priced in, we have sluggish earnings growth and high
valuations," said Christian Stocker, an equity strategist at
UniCredit in Munich.
Germany's DAX 30 index lost 0.2%, France's CAC 40 gave up 0.1%
and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 eased 0.2%.
Asian markets were mostly lower, with China's Shanghai Composite
falling 0.7% to suffer a fourth-straight decline. Japan's Nikkei
Stock Average bucked the regional trend by tacking on 0.2%.
In corporate news, Dow component UnitedHealth rose 1.4% in
premarket trading after the insurer increased its quarterly
dividend by 34% to 37.5 cents a share, and renewed its share
buyback program, which authorizes the company to repurchase 100
million shares over time.
Protective Life ran up 18% after Japan's Dai-ichi Life said it
would buy the company in a deal valued at $5.7 billion.
Tibco Software slumped 14% after the company lowered its
adjusted earnings and revenue outlook for the quarter ending June
1, citing weak sales of its analytics software called Spotfire.
Write to Tomi Kilgore at tomi.kilgore@wsj.com