(By Salman - iStockAnalyst Writer)US stock futures rose on Wednesday as investors awaited policy pronouncement from the Federal Reserve.
At 8:25 am ET, the
S&P 500 rose 0.90 points to 993.80. The
Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 13 points to 9229. The
Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.25 points to 1596.75.
The monetary policy-making body of the
US Federal Reserve, or FOMC, will announce any decision it makes on short-term interest rates. Though the central bank is expected to leave interest rates unchanged near zero, investors will be focusing on accompanying Fed statement for clues about the momentum of the world's largest economy.
A release by
Commerce Department on Wednesday showed that the
U.S. trade deficit rose to $27 billion in June from a 10-year low of $26 billion in May.
The
Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday that its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended August 7 declined 3.5 percent to 499.0.
Early on Wednesday,
Macy's Inc. (
NYSE: M) reported that second-quarter profit slipped to $7 million, or 2 cents a share, from $73 million, or 17 cents, in the year earlier period. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 20 cents a share. Revenue dropped 9.7% to $5.16 billion with same-store sales declining 9.5%.
Home builder
Toll Brothers Inc. (
NYSE: TOL) said Wednesday that fiscal third-quarter home building revenue plunged 42% to $461.3 million, with units down 36% to 792. Net signed contracts in the quarter ended July 31 increased 3% to 837 units, though the value of those contracts fell 5% to $447.7 million. The group's backlog at the end of the quarter was down 47% at $930.7 million.
Late on Tuesday,
Applied Materials Inc. (
NASDAQ: AMAT) reported that it swung to a second quarter loss of $54.9 million, or 4 cents per share, compared to profit of $164.8 million, or 12 cents per share. Excluding one-time items, Applied Materials reported a loss of $2 million, and broke even on per-share basis. Revenue fell to $1.13 billion from $1.85 billion.
Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc (
NASDAQ: JAZZ) said Tuesday that it swung to a second quarter net income of $2.2 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $51.9 million, or $2.17 a share, in the year-ago period. Total revenue more than doubled to $37.3 million
US stocks finished lower on Tuesday as investors were rattled by a a record tenth straight monthly drop in wholesale inventories.
European stocks advanced in afternoon trade. At 13:22 pm London time, the UK FTSE rose 14.08 points or 0.30% to 4,685.42. The German DAX and French CAC increased 0.70% and 0.55% respectively.
Asian stocks finished sharply lower. The Nikkei 225 fell 150.46 points or 1.42% to 10,435. The Hang Seng index of Hong Kong tumbled 638.97 points or 3.03% to 20,435.24.
NYMEX crude oil for September delivery climbed as much as 24 cents to $69.69 a barrel in electronic trading.
Disclosure: Author doesn’t own any of the stocks mentioned here.
