An up and down week for US equities is looking down so far today. Index futures contracts have fallen 0.1%-0.4% so far this morning with Dow Futures leading the way lower. Overseas, most European and Asia Pacific indices are flat heading into the holidays except for the Hang Seng which has dropped 1.7%.
Despite beating the street on earnings, Nike is trading down 11.6% in premarket action this morning. The athletic clothing and footwear producer cut its sales guidance for the current holiday quarter and its fiscal year, blaming the US Dollar and soft consumer demand. Specialty athletic retailers are falling in sympathy including Foot Locker, down 8.5% premarket, and Dicks Sporting Goods, down 4.8% premarket.
The last big data drop of the year is underway. Canada monthly GDP was steady but below expectations in October (0.0% vs street 0.2%). US Core PCE inflation eased slightly more than expected (3.2% vs street 3.3% and previous 3.5%). US durable goods orders surged in November (5.4% vs street 2.2%). US Consumer Sentiment and New Home Sales are due at 10:00 am EST.
With the US 10-year treasury note yield steady just below 3.90%, although up slightly since the latest US data came out, currency trading is relatively quiet today. The bond market closes early at 2:00 pm EST. Gold is up 1.0%, trading near $2,070/oz, Copper is quiet. Energy commodities are picking up today with Crude Oil and Natural Gas both up about 0.75%.