Stock futures were lower on Thursday as investors weigh the rising number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. and around the world.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 150 points, or 0.6%. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.5%. Nasdaq 100 futures were down by 0.2%.
Airlines, retailers and cruise lines led the early declines. United Airlines fell by 3.3%. Delta and American dropped 2.5% and 2.8%, respectively. Nordstrom and Kohl’s both slid more than 1%. Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean traded lower by 6.5%, 5% and 2.9%, respectively.
Several states in the U.S. are experiencing a resurgence of infections. Arizona reported a record-high number of new confirmed cases, while Texas saw an 11% daily spike in hospitalizations for patients with Covid-19 on Wednesday.
In China, the country’s capital city has reportedly closed schools and canceled flights to contain the latest wave of coronavirus cases. However, a disease expert in China announced the latest outbreak of coronavirus cases in Beijing had been brought under control.
“We believe the market is pricing in quite a bit of good news and the rally is likely to take a breather in coming months as the recovery evolves,” Scott Wren, Wells Fargo’s senior global market strategist, said in a note. “We expect volatility in the coming months as we gauge how the reopenings are going and how consumer spending is progressing.”
New jobless claims data is set to come out Thursday morning, offering an update on the pace of the labor market’s recovery from the pandemic. Economist polled by Dow Jones expected a total of 1.30 million new filings for the week ending June 13, a decline from 1.54 million from the week prior.
The Dow and the S&P 500 snapped their three-day winning streak on Wednesday as stocks directly linked to a successful reopening underperformed, including airlines and cruise line operators. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite eked out a small gain, lifted by popular growth names such as Amazon and Netflix.
While the market remained choppy, major stock averages are set to post solid gains this week after a sharp pullback in the week prior. The 30-stock Dow and the S&P 500 have gained more than 2% each this week so far, while the Nasdaq has risen about 3.3%.
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