Stock market futures were slightly higher Thursday as investors tried to regain their footing a day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average snapped a five-day winning streakand a recent market rally appeared to fade.
Futures contracts tied to the Dow were 16 points higher, or 0.05%. S&P 500 futures gained 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 0.11%.
Investors continued to monitor retail earnings for insight into the health of the consumer, which continued Thursday with reports from Kohl’s, Bath & Body Works and BJ’s Wholesale. Kohl’sshares slid in the premarket after the companycut its guidance.
Initial jobless data released Thursday showed claims drop to 250,000 for the week ended Aug. 13.
On Wednesday, the Dow fell roughly 172 points, or 0.5%. The S&P 500 declined 0.7% for its first negative session in four. The Nasdaq Composite was the relative underperformer, dipping 1.25%. The tech-heavy index and S&P 500 are now both on track to snap a four-week winning streak.
Those moves came as traders parsed through the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s July meeting. The central bank remains committed tofighting inflation, but indicated it could adjust its pace of tightening based on market conditions.
Investors have been hoping that the Fed might slow the pace of its rate hikes after July’sconsumer price indexreading showed inflation cooling slightly. But not everyone is convinced.
“We’re in the camp that the Fed is not going to pivot,” Scott Wren, senior global market strategist for Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said on CNBC’s“Closing Bell.”“The minutes didn’t make us change our mind at all. We think a 75 basis point hike is likely in September, and we’ll see more hikes at the end of the year ... we think the market is a little lofty right here,” he added.
Some key economic data will also be released Thursday, including weekly jobless claims and existing home sales.