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US stock index futures signal a positive start to the trading day on Thursday, as investors suspect solid profits against lingering trade war fears.
At 6:45 am, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures contracts showed a gain of 109 points at the opening. The futures on the S & P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes were also higher.
Cisco Systems shares outperformed in the pre-sell market, up 3.5% on quarterly numbers above analysts' expectations. The company also released Wednesday better than expected revenue forecasts for the current quarter. Walmart also announced quarterly results above expectations, pushing its stock up 1.4% ahead of the bell.
But gains were capped as Wall Street continued to worry about the ongoing trade gap between China and the United States. Investors had raised their prices in the two countries signing an agreement this month. Instead, the US has increased tariffs on Chinese imports worth $ 200 billion. China has responded by increasing tariffs on goods worth $ 60 billion.
On top of that, President Donald Trump on Wednesday declared a national emergency following threats against American technology. This decision should be followed by the ban on US companies to do business with Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications company.
The US Department of Commerce announced the addition of Huawei Technologies and its subsidiaries to the list of entities of the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), which made it harder for the Chinese telecommunications giant to deal with American companies.
The main stock indexes are all down more than 3% this month.
Business concerns were eased slightly Wednesday after CNBC announced that Trump was considering postponing auto rates for up to six months. The White House is facing a deadline set on Saturday to decide the opportunity to impose duties on imports of cars and parts for reasons of national security.
The news increased shares for the day, with the Dow erasing a drop of 190 points.
On the data side, investors will monitor housing starts, weekly unemployment figures and the Philadelphia Fed outlook at 8:30 am (ET).
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