US pre-open: Futures mixed following worst sell-off in months
Wall Street futures were mixed ahead of the bell on Thursday as major indices sought direction following two days of heavy losses.
As of 1215 GMT, Dow Jones futures were down 0.19%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.07% and 0.43% firmer, respectively.
The Dow Jones closed 943.24 points lower on Wednesday, marking the worst sell-off in months.
Thursday's main focus will be an advance reading of the US' third-quarter gross domestic product at 1230 GMT, with analysts expected to see growth of 32% on an annualised basis - a massive comeback that would still leave the economy far below where it was before the Covid-19 pandemic took its toll on the nation.
Weekly jobless claims data and a slew of corporate earnings were also likely to take up much of investors' attention throughout the day.
IG analyst Chris Beauchamp said: "Investors have witnessed a tremendous reset in equities over the past few days, which for some is a harbinger of another sell-off like February and March (the rise in virus cases and the return of lockdowns providing support for this idea) but for others, particularly in the US, is merely a wave of pre-election jitters that might help set up equities for a bounce after the election, assuming that event goes smoothly.
"With a few days left until the election, however, there are unlikely to be many bargain hunters out shopping this side of the weekend, which sets up the potential for another flush in stocks to provide just the right kind of market turmoil as a backdrop to this hotly-contested presidential election."
On the macro front, the advanced third-quarter GDP figures will be released at 1230 GMT, as will the latest round of weekly jobless claims data and an advance reading of the core personal consumption expenditures price index for the third-quarter.
In the corporate space, Molson Coors beat both earnings and revenue estimates, while Dunkin Brands also topped earnings estimates thanks to a bump in same-store sales.
Still to come, Kellogg and Ralph Lauren, were both slated to report earnings during the session, while Amazon, Activision Blizzard, Alphabet, Apple, Western Union, Starbucks, MGM Resorts, Shake Shack, Facebook, Twitter and Shopify were all scheduled to update the market on their most recent trading quarters after the close.