US pre-open: Stocks seen lower as investors eye Apple press event
US stock futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Monday amid worries about global growth, with Apple firmly in focus ahead of a press event.
At 1215 GMT, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 futures were 0.2% and 0.3% weaker, respectively, while Nasdaq futures were down 0.5%.
James Hughes, chief market analyst at Axi Trader, said: "Donald Trump may have been cleared of conspiring with Russia in the 2016 election campaign, but that has done nothing to boost sentiment in equity markets, with the mounting threat of recession proving far more pervasive. Expectations late last night had been that the news would set Wall Street on fire, but as it stands, positivity is being reined in by the idea that we’re on the cusp of a global economic slowdown.
"Major Asian markets closed universally lower with losses of 2%-3% being recorded, and although US equity indices may have at one stage been eyeing a slightly higher start, confidence certainly looks rather thin on the ground for now."
Hughes said that while economic data before the weekend may have disappointed, it was the inversion of the US Treasury 10-year yield curve that appears to have been the most significant indicator over the threat of recession.
"Expect this metric to be closely watched in the days ahead. Economic data in the near term remains thin on the ground and it’s also worth bearing in mind that yesterday’s news from Washington still doesn’t mark the end of the investigation against President Trump," he said.
In corporate news, shares in technology giant Apple were a smidgen lower in pre-market trade ahead of a press event later in the day entitled "It's Showtime".
CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "Given that Apple is such a key component of the US Fang+ index today’s media event is likely to be a key arbiter of how not only Apple performs in the next few weeks but also the Fang+ index given that both it and Amazon were until recently trillion-dollar companies, and could well be again.
"The reason this is a big deal for Apple is that we may well have reached peak iPhone in terms of sales, particularly given that the average price point is so much higher now and companies like Huawei and Samsung have eaten into its market share."
Elsewhere, Viacom shares rallied ahead of the open following reports that it and AT&T were continuing negotiations to avert a programming blackout that would leave more than 24 million pay-TV customers without channels like Nickelodeon and Comedy Central.
Winnebago was also higher in pre-market trade after the manufacturer of motor homes' second-quarter profit came in ahead of analysts' expectations.
On the data front, the Chicago Fed national activity index is at 1230 GMT, while the Dallas Fed manufacturing business index is at 1430 GMT.