Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Wall Street looks flat after S&P 500, Nasdaq record closes
A trader works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, August 20, 2021.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
U.S. stock futures were flat Thursday ahead of two key before-the-bell economic reports. The S&P 500 on Wednesday crossed 4,500 for the first time ever, but ended slightly below that level for another record high close. The Nasdaq finished at another record. Both benchmarks were on five-session winning streaks heading into the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw its fourth straight positive session and inched closer to last week’s record high close — roughly 0.6% away. Dow stock Salesforce rose 2% in Thursday’s premarket, the morning after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, as well as robust forward guidance.
2. Jobless claims, GDP data out ahead of Fed summit
Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The 10-year Treasury yield was steady Thursday, one day after rising to its highest level in weeks. Traders will get the latest figures on weekly jobless claims and economic growth at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect 350,000 new claims for the week ended Aug. 21. That would be a slight increase from the previous week’s pandemic-era low. The government’s second look at gross domestic product for the second quarter is seen rising slightly from the previous estimate to an annual rate of 6.7%. Several regional Federal Reserve presidents speak Thursday, ahead of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell‘s Friday address to the virtual Jackson Hole, Wyoming, summit. Kansas City Fed President Esther George said it’s time for the central bank to start dialing back its policy stimulus.
3. Pediatric Covid hospitalizations surge to highest on record in U.S.
A woman walks near the emergency entrance at Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children.
Paul Hennessy | SOPA Images | LightRocket | Getty Images
New Covid hospital admissions for kids have reached their highest levels since the U.S. started tracking pediatric cases about a year ago. Doctors are warning it could get worse as schools begin to reopen and the fast-moving delta variant drives infections higher. While delta is more contagious than previous variants, causing a surge in pediatric hospitalizations, so far it doesn’t appear to generate more severe disease in children. Kids still account for a small number of hospitalizations at 1.8%. Out of more than 520,000 Covid deaths the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has demographic data on, fewer than 500 were kids under 18.
4. UK reports ‘high threat’ of terrorist attack at Kabul airport
Evacuees wait to board a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, August 23, 2021.
Sgt. Isaiah Campbell | U.S. Marine Corps | via Reuters
Officials from the U.K. have warned of a “highly credible” threat of an attack…
Read More: 5 things to know before the stock market opens Thursday, Aug. 26