(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Wednesday, with focus on services activity data due later in the day after a report earlier this week amplified economic slowdown worries, while PayPal gained on raising its profit forecast.
The Institute of Supply Management’s data, due at 10 a.m. ET, is expected to show its index for non-manufacturing activity slipped to 53.5 last month from 55.3 in June, the fourth straight monthly decline. The services sector accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity.
Wall Street started August on a sour note after data earlier on Monday showed factory activity across the United States, China and Eurozone weakened in July, while U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan sparked concerns about escalating tensions between the United States and China.
Pelosi left Taiwan on Wednesday after pledging solidarity and hailing its democracy.
Meanwhile, a trio of Federal Reserve officials from across the policy spectrum signaled on Tuesday that the U.S. central bank remains open on aggressively increasing rates to tame decades-high inflation.
A largely upbeat second-quarter earnings season has helped markets bounce back recently. The benchmark S&P 500 index and tech-heavy Nasdaq are up 12.4% and 16.9%, respectively, from lows hit in mid-June.
At 6:46 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 112 points, or 0.35%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 13.5 points, or 0.33%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 37.75 points, or 0.29%.
PayPal Holdings climbed 11.7% in premarket trading after it raised its annual profit guidance and said activist investor Elliott Management has an over $2 billion stake in the fintech company.
CVS Health Corp rose 2.1% as the largest U.S. pharmacy chain raised its full-year profit forecast after strength in its insurance business and sales of COVID-19 over-the-counter test kits helped the company report a 6% jump in second-quarter earnings.
Starbucks Corp gained 1.9% after the coffee chain posted upbeat quarterly profit aided by higher prices and strong demand for its coffees in the United States.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc slid 5.4% after the chip designer forecast third-quarter revenue slightly below Wall Street estimates.
Shares of vacation rental company Airbnb Inc dipped 7.2% after it forecast bookings for the current quarter at par with the record-breaking previous one, disappointing investors.
(Reporting by Aniruddha Ghosh and Devik Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
