ERTS Electronic Arts Inc. (MM)

By Mark DeCambre, MarketWatch , Ryan Vlastelica

Salesforce gives weaker-than-expected outlook

U.S. stock-index futures edged slightly lower Thursday, suggesting a modest retreat from a multiday rally that took indexes to repeated records.

Where are the major indexes trading?

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 57 points, or 0.2%, to 26,088. Futures for the S&P 500 were off 12 points to 2,911, a decline of 0.1%. Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 9.25 points to 7,656, a decline of 0.2%.

On Wednesday, Wall Street closed modestly higher in what was the fourth straight day of gains for the major indexes. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite Index ended at records for a fourth straight session.

For the month of August, the S&P is up 3.5% and the Nasdaq has gained 5.7%. Both are on track for their fifth straight monthly advance, while the Nasdaq is on track for its biggest monthly gain since January. The Dow is up 2.8%, its second straight positive month.

Don't miss:It's 'dangerous' for bears to ignore the recent breakout in stocks, analyst says (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/its-dangerous-for-bears-to-ignore-the-recent-breakout-in-stocks-analyst-says-2018-08-30)

What factors are driving markets?

Recent gains on Wall Street have come on an apparent easing of tensions between the U.S. and its major trading partners. Late Tuesday, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland met with Trump administration officials in an attempt to resolve testy discussions between the two countries on trade, coming on the heels of the U.S. and Mexico's announcement of progress toward a bilateral trade agreement that may ultimately result in a retooling of the trilateral North American Free Trade Agreement.

Investors have viewed these events as signs of progress that could help the economy avoid a full-blown trade war. That prospect is seen as one of the biggest headwinds facing stocks, and while it will likely remain in focus -- particularly ahead of negotiations with China and other trading partners -- equities have mostly looked past the issue of late. Instead, the uptrend has been supported by strong corporate earnings and improvements in economic data.

In the latest development, Reuters reported that President Donald Trump had approved targeted relief on steel and aluminum quotas (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-grants-steel-aluminum-relief-for-some-trade-partners-report-2018-08-29) for some U.S. trade partners.

Thus far this week, an update on second-quarter gross domestic product showed growth coming in at a 4.2% pace, slightly better than the initial reading of 4.1%. Separately, a reading of consumer confidence came in at its highest level since October 2000. However, pending-home sales fell in the latest sign of faltering momentum in the housing market (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/pending-home-sales-stumble-as-housing-market-momentum-wanes-2018-08-29).

On Thursday, a report on Initial jobless claims, a tracker of sorts for layoffs in the U.S., rose by 3,000 to 213,000 in the seven days from Aug. 19 to Aug. 25. Economists polled by MarketWatch had forecast a 212,000 reading.

Meanwhile, consumer spending climbed 0.4% in July, according to a government reading on Thursday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/consumers-keep-on-spending-in-july-pushing-key-inflation-gauge-to-6-year-high-2018-08-30), matching the estimate of economists polled by MarketWatch. Incomes rose 0.3%. And the 12-month increase in the PCE index, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge, rose to 2.3% from 2.2%, marking the highest level since April 2012.

Trading volumes could be light, as is typical for the final week of August. Markets will be closed on Monday for the Labor Day holiday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/labor-day-which-markets-are-closed-2018-08-29).

What are market analysts saying?

Reports that the U.S. and Mexico have reached a preliminary deal is "alleviating some of the uncertainty faced by businesses surrounding trade and supply chains between the two countries," said Niladri Mukherjee, head of CIO portfolio strategy at Merrill Lynch and U.S. Trust.

"We feel that the potential for Canada to return to the negotiations would be a positive signal for the prospects of a more comprehensive deal and could support investor sentiment... any de-escalation of trade hostilities could drive equities higher."

What stocks are in focus?

Salesforce.com Inc. (CRM) gave a third-quarter outlook that was below expectations (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/salesforce-results-top-wall-street-estimates-but-third-quarter-earnings-outlook-doesnt-2018-08-29). It also reported quarterly results that came in ahead of forecasts.

Campbell Soup (CPB) plans to sell (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/campbell-soup-to-abandon-fresh-food-focus-2018-08-30) its international operations and refrigerated-foods business, abandoning efforts to become a more fresh-oriented company and leaving the door open to a full sale. The company is scheduled to report its quarterly results later Thursday.

Ciena Corp. (CIEN) jumped 6.2% in premarket trading after it reported third-quarter results that beat expectations (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/cienas-stock-soars-after-earnings-revenue-beat-expectations-2018-08-30).

Signet Jewelers Ltd. (SIG) soared 18% before the bell after it reported second-quarter results that were much stronger than expected. It also raised its full-year outlook (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/signet-jewelers-stock-soars-18-premarket-after-blowout-earnings-2018-08-30).

A subsidiary of News Corp. (NWS.AU)agreed to buy real-estate technology platform Opcity (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/news-corp-to-acquire-online-real-estate-platform-opcity-for-210-million-2018-08-29) for $210 million. News Corp is the owner of MarketWatch parent Dow Jones & Co.

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) said Thursday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/electronic-arts-moves-release-date-for-battlefield-v-back-four-weeks-tweaks-guidance-2018-08-30) that it is pushing back the release date for Battlefield V by four weeks to Nov. 20 and tweaking its guidance for net bookings to reflect the later release.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 30, 2018 08:56 ET (12:56 GMT)

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