Dow Jones futures gain as oil slide offsets Fed rate hike jitters
- US stock futures advance as falling oil prices ease fears over potential supply disruptions and broader inflation concerns.
- Wall Street tumbled overnight after the Federal Reserve delivered its first interest rate hike in three years.
- The Fed raised rates by 25 basis points to 3.75%–4.00% and signaled potential future increases.
Dow Jones futures rise by 0.82% to trade near 51,930 during European hours on Thursday. Meanwhile, S&P 500 futures gain by 0.82% to trade around 7,620, while Nasdaq 100 futures advance by 0.98% to trade near 29,250.
US stock futures advance as market sentiment improves as oil prices retreat amid easing concerns over supply disruptions and inflation. Oil prices decline following reports that Saudi Arabia plans to restore roughly half the capacity of its East-West pipeline within days and achieve full operation within six weeks. Easing global supply concerns further, Saudi Arabia has stepped up efforts to transport larger volumes of crude through Hormuz with assistance from the US military. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright also confirmed that 18 million barrels of crude and petroleum products successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week.
This positive pre-market momentum comes right after Wall Street posted overnight losses following the Federal Reserve's (Fed) decision to deliver its first interest rate hike in three years. During regular US trading on Wednesday, the Dow Jones dropped 1.21%, largely dragged down by losses among financial services stocks. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also gave up earlier session gains to finish lower by 0.45% and 0.01%, respectively.
The market downturn reflected the US central bank's policy shift, as the Fed raised the federal funds rate by 25 basis points to a target range of 3.75% to 4.00%. While the increase matched market expectations, sentiment remained cautious after officials signaled that another rate hike could still occur before the end of the year.
Tech resilience offsets deeper losses in blue chips and banks
Analysts at Deutsche Bank note that the equity sell-off was uneven across sectors, with growth names cushioning the broader move lower. They highlight that “tech stocks helped limit the size of the aggregate decline, with the Nasdaq (-0.01%) and the Mag-7 (-0.11%) outperforming as the Philly Semiconductor Index (+0.63%) advanced.” In contrast, Deutsche Bank points to “sharper losses amid blue chip names, with the Dow Jones (-1.21%) falling to a three-month low, while banks (-2.30%) and energy stocks (-2.97%) led the losses for the S&P 500.”
Dow Jones FAQs
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, one of the oldest stock market indices in the world, is compiled of the 30 most traded stocks in the US. The index is price-weighted rather than weighted by capitalization. It is calculated by summing the prices of the constituent stocks and dividing them by a factor, currently 0.152. The index was founded by Charles Dow, who also founded the Wall Street Journal. In later years it has been criticized for not being broadly representative enough because it only tracks 30 conglomerates, unlike broader indices such as the S&P 500.
Many different factors drive the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). The aggregate performance of the component companies revealed in quarterly company earnings reports is the main one. US and global macroeconomic data also contributes as it impacts on investor sentiment. The level of interest rates, set by the Federal Reserve (Fed), also influences the DJIA as it affects the cost of credit, on which many corporations are heavily reliant. Therefore, inflation can be a major driver as well as other metrics which impact the Fed decisions.
Dow Theory is a method for identifying the primary trend of the stock market developed by Charles Dow. A key step is to compare the direction of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the Dow Jones Transportation Average (DJTA) and only follow trends where both are moving in the same direction. Volume is a confirmatory criteria. The theory uses elements of peak and trough analysis. Dow’s theory posits three trend phases: accumulation, when smart money starts buying or selling; public participation, when the wider public joins in; and distribution, when the smart money exits.
There are a number of ways to trade the DJIA. One is to use ETFs which allow investors to trade the DJIA as a single security, rather than having to buy shares in all 30 constituent companies. A leading example is the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA). DJIA futures contracts enable traders to speculate on the future value of the index and Options provide the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell the index at a predetermined price in the future. Mutual funds enable investors to buy a share of a diversified portfolio of DJIA stocks thus providing exposure to the overall index.
