U.S. stock index futures tread water in evening deals on Wednesday following a negative session on Wall Street amid persistent concerns over higher-for-longer interest rates.
A mixed batch of first-quarter earnings also kept traders on edge, ahead of more key reports- particularly from the technology sector- due this week.
But Wall Street was reeling from an extended rout in the technology sector, with chipmakers seeing heavy selling on Wednesday following disappointing earnings from industry majors.
S&P 500 Futures steadied at 5,064.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.1% to 17,682.75 points by 19:40 ET (23:40 GMT). Dow Jones Futures steadied at 5,022.21 points.
Wall St battered by chipmaker rout as ASML earnings disappoint
Wall Street indexes fell for a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, hit by steep losses in chipmaking stocks following weaker-than-expected earnings from Dutch semiconductor technology giant ASML Holding NV (AS: ASML). ASML’s U.S. shares (NASDAQ: ASML) slid 7% during the session.
Market darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) slid nearly 4% during the session but rose about 0.5% in aftermarket trade. Smaller peer Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NASDAQ: AMD) lost 5.8% and was up 0.2% after-hours.
ASML acts as somewhat of a bellwether for chip demand, given that it manufactures advanced lithographic equipment used in making semiconductors.
Broader markets were pressured by a spike in Treasury yields, following signs of sticky U.S. inflation and hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve.
The S&P 500 fell 0.6% to 5,022.21 points on Wednesday, while the NASDAQ Composite lagged its peers with a 1.2% decline to 15,683.37 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 0.1% at 37,753.31 points.
Netflix, TSMC earnings on tap
Focus was now squarely on upcoming earnings reports. For the chip sector, earnings from TSMC (TW:2330) (NYSE: TSM)- the world’s largest contract chipmaker- were due during the Asian session on Thursday.
TSMC is largely regarded as a bellwether for global chip demand and is expected to clock stronger earnings on the back of increasing demand for artificial intelligence-linked chips.
Video streaming giant Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) is also set to report first-quarter earnings on Thursday, as is asset manager Blackstone Inc (NYSE: BX)
Aftermarket movers: Micron, Alcoa rise, Equifax tumbles
Among major aftermarket movers, aluminium producer Alcoa Corp (NYSE: AA) rose nearly 3% after its earnings topped estimates, and it flagged steady production in 2024.
Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ: MU) was an outlier among chipmaking stocks, rising over 2% in aftermarket trade following reports that the memory chip maker was set to receive over $6 billion in government grants. The stock had fallen 4.5% during the session.
Equifax Inc (NYSE: EFX) plummeted nearly 10% after posting weaker-than-expected guidance.
Casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp (NYSE: LVS) fell 3% despite beating profit expectations, as underperformance in its Macau operations remained a concern.
