Dow futures increased 190 points, S&P 500 poised to retake record

June 25, 2021: -Stock futures jumped on Thursday, with the S&P 500 poised to increase its record high set a week ago.On Thursday, Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 191 points or 0.6%. The move implied an open around 200 points higher. S&P 500 futures added 0.5% and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 0.6%.

A broad group of stocks was jumping in premarket trading and set to push the benchmark above a new all-time high. Tesla added above 2%, while GM and Caterpillar each gained about 1%.

On Wednesday, despite a slight decline, the S&P 500 is up 1.8% so far this week and sits just 0.4% from an all-time high set last on Tuesday, the day before a Federal Reserve policy update caused a dip in the market.

Investors await new jobs data set to be released at 8:30 a.m. According to economists polled by Dow Jones, ET, which is expected to show weekly jobless claims, decreased to 380,000 from 412,000 the week prior. Data on durable goods orders will also be released.

Traders are also monitoring infrastructure package negotiations. A bipartisan group of Senators that have made progress on a plan will meet President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday.

On Thursday, Bank shares gained from the Fed’s annual bank stress test results are scheduled for release after the bell. The test examines how banks fare during various hypothetical economic downturns. Banks were forced to freeze dividends and stop buybacks in the pandemic. These results should give them the green light to eventually raise payouts. Goldman Sachs shares increase about 1% in premarket trading.

The S&P 500 snapped a two-day winning streak on Wednesday, closing the regular session 0.1% lesser. The Dow also shed 71.34 points or 0.2%. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite had a profit of 0.1% to squeeze out another record closing high.

Last week, despite Wednesday’s hiccup, the three major indexes were up more than 1% this week, rallying from a sell-off after the Federal Reserve heightened inflation expectations and forecast rate hikes as soon as 2023. During a Congressional testimony Tuesday, comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that inflation pressures should be temporary, which seemed to soothe market sentiment.

“Beneath the optimism, markets are at risk to become complacent and vulnerable to shocks. Any signal that interest rates and bond yields could rise, even in the absence of pronounced inflationary pressure, could shatter market vitality,” Gaurav Mallik, chief portfolio strategist at State Street Global Advisors, said.

Darden Restaurants, Nike, and FedEx are set to report quarterly earnings on Thursday.