Below are the most important news, trends and analyzes that investors need to start their trading day:
1. Wall Street looks flat after closing the Nasdaq record
A trader works on the ground on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York on August 20, 2021.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
U.S. stock futures were flat Thursday ahead of two key economic reports before the bell. The S&P 500 on Wednesday crossed 4,500 for the first time, but ended slightly below that level for another record close. The Nasdaq finished on another record. Both benchmarks were in five-session winning lines in the open. The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw its fourth consecutive session positive and approached last week’s record high, about 0.6% away. Dow Stock Salesforce rose 2% in the pre-market on Thursday morning after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings and earnings, as well as strong forward guidance.
2. Unemployment claims, GDP data before Fed summit
Luke Sharrett / Bloomberg via Getty Images
The ten-year Treasury yield was stable on Thursday, a day after rising to a week high. Traders will receive the latest figures on weekly claims for unemployment and economic growth at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect 350,000 new claims for the week ended Aug. 21. That would be a slight increase from the low of the previous week’s pandemic era. The second look at the government’s gross domestic product for the second quarter is seen to increase slightly from the previous estimate to an annual rate of 6.7%. Several Federal Reserve regional presidents speak Thursday, ahead of Friday speech by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell at the virtual summit in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
3. Covid pediatric hospitalizations increase to the highest recorded in the US
A woman walks near the emergency entrance of Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital.
Paul Hennessy | Images SOUP | LightRocket | Getty Images
New Covid hospital admissions for children have reached the highest levels since the U.S. began tracking pediatric cases about a year ago. Doctors warn that it could get worse as schools begin to open and the rapidly moving delta variant increases infections. Although the delta is more contagious than previous variants, causing an increase in pediatric hospitalizations, so far it does not appear to cause more serious illnesses in children. Children continue to account for a small number of hospitalizations: 1.8%. Of the more than 520,000 covide deaths, disease control and prevention centers have demographic data, less than 500 were under the age of 18.
4. The UK denounces a “major threat” of terrorist attack at Kabul airport
The evacuees are waiting aboard a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III during an evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on August 23, 2021.
Sergeant. Isaiah Campbell | US Marine Corps via Reuters
UK officials have warned of a “highly credible” threat of an attack on Kabul airport by Islamic State militants. The terrorist alert comes as massive evacuation efforts enter their final stages, with countries struggling to get people out of Taliban-controlled Afghanistan before the August 31 deadline set by President Joe Biden. As many as 1,500 Americans are still waiting to be evacuated from Afghanistan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in his first news conference since the Afghan government fell to the Taliban more than a week ago.
5. Microsoft and Google promise to spend billions on cybersecurity after the Biden meeting
(LR) Apple CEO Tim Cook, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna and Google CEO Sundar Pichai hear US President Joe Biden speak at a meeting on cybersecurity at east room of the White House on August 25, 2021 in Washington, DC.
Drew Angerer | Getty Images
Business leaders in various industries pledged billions of dollars to increase U.S. cybersecurity capabilities. Microsoft has pledged $ 20 billion over five years to offer more advanced security tools, according to a tweet from Satya Nadella’s CEO, following Wednesday’s meeting at the White House with the president. Alphabet’s Google has pledged to invest more than $ 10 billion over five years to strengthen cybersecurity and train 100,000 U.S. workers in technical fields. Two water company executives who left the meeting told CNBC that the discussion emphasized cross-sector collaboration.
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