How are stock-index futures trading:
S&P 500 futures are up 0.6%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are gaining 0.4%.
Nasdaq 100 futures are adding 0.8%.
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 30 points, or 0.07%, to 42,544, the S&P 500 declined 25 points, or 0.43%, to 5,882, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 176 points, or 0.9%, to 19,311.
U.S. stocks are looking to start the new year on the front foot after a generally upbeat 2024 ended with a whimper.
The S&P 500 rose 23.3% last year, but the last four sessions saw the barometer retreat four days in a row, registering a 2.6% loss, as some investors fretted about rising bond yields, high valuations and contrasting views on how the incoming Trump administration may impact the economy.
“The S&P 500 is set to open higher, with investors hopeful that a goldilocks scenario will be the story of 2025, amid promises of lower taxes and the deregulation under a second Trump presidency,” says Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“But with fresh trade wars looming, if the worst of the tariff threats are imposed, the bears could be back to disrupt what has been a fairytale performance for the U.S. stock market,” Streeter adds.
U.S. economic data due on Thursday include the weekly initial jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. Eastern, followed at 10:00 a.m. by construction spending for November.