US pre-open: Futures mostly lower ahead of Powell testimony

Wall Street futures were mostly lower ahead of the bell on Tuesday as steep losses in tech shares dragged down both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite ahead of some hotly awaited comments from Fed chairman Jerome Powell.

As of 1245 GMT, Dow Jones futures were up 0.02%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures were 0.44% and 1.51% lower, respectively.

The Dow closed 27.37 points higher on Monday in what was a mixed session for major indices.

Rapidly rising Treasury yields were again in focus ahead of the bell on Tuesday amid concerns that they could hurt high-growth companies reliant on easy borrowing - the same stocks that have so far thrived in the Covid-19 pandemic.

The 10-year Treasury yield rose to around 1.35% on Monday after jumping 14 basis points last week to hit its highest level since February 2020.

However, today's primary focus will be Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, who will deliver his semi-annual testimony on the state of the US economy before the Senate Banking Committee later in the day, with his comments on rates and inflation likely determining market direction for the remainder of the week.

IG's Chris Beauchamp said: "With earnings season generally done and the Biden stimulus plan still yet to come to fruition markets are fast running out of reasons to hold their ground or move higher; weakness in the second half of February and into March is a typical event at this time of year, with the fears about inflation and bond yields providing the excuse for some profit-taking after a very healthy start to the year."

On the macro front, December's monthly house price index will be published at 1400 GMT, while February's Conference Board consumer confidence survey and the Richmond Fed manufacturing index will follow at 1500 GMT, as will Senate testimony from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.

Real estate firm CBRE posted an all-time high quarterly adjusted earnings per share and a 9% jump in adjusted underlying earnings, while Crocs reported a record annual revenue of $1.4bn.

Home Depot topped estimates on a 25% surge in quarterly sales, while Macy's said holiday sales had helped the retailer record its first profitable quarter in a year.

Still to come, software firm Mcafee will publish its latest quarterly results after the close.