Investing.com - U.S. stock futures were mixed on Thursday, as concerns over the political deadlock in Greece and a potential Greek exit from the euro zone persisted while investors eyed the release of a string of U.S. economic data later in the day.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.01%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.26% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated 0.02% loss.
Market sentiment came under pressure after Alexis Tsipras, the head of Greece’s second-biggest party Syriza, Alexis Tsipras gave up his attempt to form a new government on Wednesday, pushing the debt-stricken country closer to its second election in a few weeks and prompting European governments to withhold part of the latest tranche of rescue funds to be paid on Thursday.
Greek Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos was to make a last attempt to form a government on Thursday, but chances seemed slim after both the conservatives and leftists tried and failed.
Markets were also affected by data showing earlier that Chinese exports and imports in April were well below analysts’ expectations. In a report, the Customs General Administration of China said the nation’s trade surplus widened to USD18.42 billion in April from USD5.35 in the previous month.
Cisco Systems was expected to be in focus, as shares dove 7.93% in pre-market trade after it forecast quarterly earnings below expectations, accentuating concerns about global technology spending and the network equipment maker's ability to weather persistent economic weakness.
Also in the tech sector, Foxconn Technology Group, which makes Apple's products, said it is confident of achieving 10% revenue growth this year, as it plans to open new China headquarters in Shanghai.
Elsewhere, Yahoo shares fell 0.20% in after hour trade, after the Internet company’s largest outside shareholder said it should make its finance chief or head of media the interim chief executive because of the controversy surrounding CEO Scott Thompson's educational background.
Thompson recently apologized to employees after being accused last week by activist investor Daniel Loeb of padding his resume.
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. was likely to be in focus as well, as shares surged 1.53% in late trading after the news group posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit, aided by its cable networks and movie studio business.
Energy stocks were also slated to move during Thursday’s session amid reports PetroChina is in talks to buy Valero Energy's shuttered refinery in Aruba, the latest move by China's oil giants to take advantage of a global refining downturn to beef up supply.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply lower. The EURO STOXX 50 eased down 0.05%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.68%, Germany's DAX added 0.12%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.28%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 0.9%, while markets in Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dipped 0.3%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release official data on trade balance, followed by government reports on unemployment claims and import prices. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was also due to speak.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.01%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.26% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated 0.02% loss.
Market sentiment came under pressure after Alexis Tsipras, the head of Greece’s second-biggest party Syriza, Alexis Tsipras gave up his attempt to form a new government on Wednesday, pushing the debt-stricken country closer to its second election in a few weeks and prompting European governments to withhold part of the latest tranche of rescue funds to be paid on Thursday.
Greek Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos was to make a last attempt to form a government on Thursday, but chances seemed slim after both the conservatives and leftists tried and failed.
Markets were also affected by data showing earlier that Chinese exports and imports in April were well below analysts’ expectations. In a report, the Customs General Administration of China said the nation’s trade surplus widened to USD18.42 billion in April from USD5.35 in the previous month.
Cisco Systems was expected to be in focus, as shares dove 7.93% in pre-market trade after it forecast quarterly earnings below expectations, accentuating concerns about global technology spending and the network equipment maker's ability to weather persistent economic weakness.
Also in the tech sector, Foxconn Technology Group, which makes Apple's products, said it is confident of achieving 10% revenue growth this year, as it plans to open new China headquarters in Shanghai.
Elsewhere, Yahoo shares fell 0.20% in after hour trade, after the Internet company’s largest outside shareholder said it should make its finance chief or head of media the interim chief executive because of the controversy surrounding CEO Scott Thompson's educational background.
Thompson recently apologized to employees after being accused last week by activist investor Daniel Loeb of padding his resume.
Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. was likely to be in focus as well, as shares surged 1.53% in late trading after the news group posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit, aided by its cable networks and movie studio business.
Energy stocks were also slated to move during Thursday’s session amid reports PetroChina is in talks to buy Valero Energy's shuttered refinery in Aruba, the latest move by China's oil giants to take advantage of a global refining downturn to beef up supply.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply lower. The EURO STOXX 50 eased down 0.05%, France’s CAC 40 declined 0.68%, Germany's DAX added 0.12%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.28%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 0.9%, while markets in Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dipped 0.3%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release official data on trade balance, followed by government reports on unemployment claims and import prices. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was also due to speak.