By Oliver Gray
Investing.com - U.S. stock futures were lower in early APAC deals on Thursday, after major benchmark indices extended declines during regular trade, with the Nasdaq Composite falling more than 10% from its November high as investors continue to dump tech shares amid forecasted rate hikes from the Federal Reserve.
On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 339.82 points or 0.96% to 35028.66, the S&P 500 fell 44.33 points or 0.97% to 4532.77 and the NASDAQ Composite retreated 166.64 points or 1.15% to 14340.26, bringing the index 10.7% off its most recent record close in November 2021.
Dow Jones Futures were flat while S&P 500 Futures and Nasdaq 100 Futures were both down 0.08%.
Among stocks, major technology names finished mostly lower, with Block Inc (NYSE:SQ) down 1.43%, Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) dipping 1.65%, Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) down 2.1%, Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) falling 0.65% and NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) retreating 3.23% while Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) added 0.22%, Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) gained 0.45% and Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) added 0.13%.
EV makers finished mixed with Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Rivian Automotive Inc (NASDAQ:RIVN) down 3.38% and 5.14% respectively while Lucid Group Inc (NASDAQ:LCID) added 2.09%.
Financial heavyweights also retreated with JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) down 1.55%, Citizens Financial Group Inc (NYSE:CFG) falling 2.35%, Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) dipping 1.62% and Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) losing 1.98%. Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) finished 0.39% higher however after earnings came in above analyst expectations. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) also rose 1.83% after the bank’s fourth-quarter profits topped estimates.
Sony Group Corp (NYSE:SONY) tumbled 5.01% after Microsoft announced the acquisition video game publisher Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI) for $US69 billion.
Meantime, Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) lifted 3.36% reporting better than expected fiscal second-quarter earnings and revenue while raising its outlook for sales growth.
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) finished 0.33% higher after quarterly results beat expectations on top and bottom lines.
In extended deals, United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:UAL) was down 2.05% after reporting quarterly results, warning that the Omicron coronavirus variant will delay its pandemic recovery.
On the bond markets, the United States 10-Year yield remained elevated at 2-year highs of 1.854% as investors prepare for the possibility of more aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve.
Ahead in the session, investors will be closely monitoring fresh jobless claims and existing home sales data due Thursday, while Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF), Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB), American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL), Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP) and Baker Hughes Co (NYSE:BKR) are set to report earnings Thursday before the bell. Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) earnings, due after the opening bell, will also be keenly watched.