US pre-open: Stocks seen lower as Fed minutes digested

US stocks pointed to a slightly lower open on Wall Street on Thursday as investors continued to digest the latest minutes from the Federal Reserve.

At 1245 BST, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 futures were down 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively, while Nasdaq futures were 0.5% lower.

On Wednesday, minutes from the Fed showed that members of the rate-setting committee were broadly in agreement about the need to lift borrowing costs. A number of the committee expressed support for raising the base rate above a neutral level to keep inflation in check.

Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said the minutes caused further unrest as they reaffirmed the widely held opinion at the central bank that interest rates have further to rise including another hike this year.

"Why this came as such a surprise is something of a mystery as the minutes didn’t appear to deviate from the message after the meeting when the central bank raised interest rates and removed the reference to policy being accommodative.

"This may instead be a reflection of the fragility of financial markets right now and sensitivity to higher interest rates which appeared to be behind the recent sell-off. In many ways, the minutes are outdated as they don’t take into consideration the current unstable market environment which, if it persists, may encourage policy makers to take their foot off the gas a little. One thing is clear, the minutes will not make Trump happy after a series of public attacks against the Fed for raising rates in a manner that undermines his growth goals."

On the corporate front, shares of biopharmaceutical group Endocyte rocketed 50% in pre-market trade as it agreed to be bought by Swiss drug maker Novartis for $2.1bn.

Philip Morris looked set to gain at the open after better-than-expected third-quarter earnings, while Travelers ticked a touch higher in pre-market trade after the release of its third-quarter numbers.

Bank of New York Mellon was also in focus as it posted a slowdown in third-quarter sales growth.

Still to come, American Express and Paypal are slated to report their earnings after the closing bell.

On the data front, initial jobless claims and the Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index are at 1330 BST.