Exchange-Traded Funds, Equity Futures Higher Pre-Bell Thursday as Investors Digest Fed Comments Ahead of Economic Data

The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust was up 0.7% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust advanced 0.8% in Thursday's premarket activity, as investors digested the US Federal Reserve's comments about toning down rate cuts next year ahead of economic reports due later in the day.

US stock futures were also higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.7%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.6%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.7% before the start of regular trading.

Reports releasing at 8.30 am ET include the Q3 gross domestic product index, the jobless claims report, the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index, and the revised Q3 corporate profit.

The existing home sales report will be released at 10 am ET, followed by the EIA Natural Gas Report at 10:30 am ET.

The Treasury International Capital posts at 4 pm ET, and the Fed balance sheet at 4:30 pm ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 1.5% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF was 1.7% higher.

Power Play:

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund was flat, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund was up 2.8%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF was inactive, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund gained nearly 1%. The VanEck Retail ETF and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF were inactive.

Lamb Weston Holdings shares were down more than 18% pre-bell after the company reported lower fiscal Q2 results and cut its fiscal 2025 guidance. The company also named Chief Operating Officer Michael J. Smith as president and chief executive.

Winners and Losers:

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund was up by 0.6%.

Verde Clean Fuels stock was up nearly 9% before Thursday's opening bell after the company said Diamondback Energy subsidiary Cottonmouth Ventures has agreed to a $50 million equity investment in Verde by buying 12.5 million Verde shares at $4 apiece.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund advanced 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund and the iShares US Healthcare ETF were inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF was down 0.5%.

Sangamo Therapeutics stock was up more than 8% premarket after the company entered into a licensing deal granting Astellas Pharma worldwide rights to its neurotropic adeno-associated virus capsid, STAC/BBB, for neurological disease targets.

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund advanced nearly 1%, and the iShares US Technology ETF was 0.9% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF was up 0.8%. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF gained 0.9%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF rose by 0.4%.

Nvidia shares were down more than 2% in recent Thursday premarket activity after the company's supplier SK Hynix was awarded up to $458 million in direct funding from the US Department of Commerce under the CHIPS Incentives Program's Funding Opportunity for Commercial Fabrication Facilities.

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund advanced 0.4%, the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund was up 0.7%, while the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.

Lennox International stock was up nearly 2% before the opening bell after S&P Dow Jones Indices said late Wednesday that the company will replace Catalent (CTLT) in the S&P 500, effective before the opening of trading on Dec. 23.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund advanced 0.6%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares was up 1.8%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares fell by 2.2%.

X Financial shares were up 1% pre-bell Thursday after the company said it has signed a deal with a major stockholder to buy back about 6.3 million American depositary shares representing about 38.1 million Class A shares at $7.67 per ADS for $48.7 million.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated 0.2% to $70.42 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas gained 3.2% to reach $3.48 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund increased by 0.5%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund rose by 2.4%.

Gold futures for February retreated 1% to $2,625.70 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures fell 2.8% to $29.87 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares advanced 0.6%, while the iShares Silver Trust was down by 0.2%.