08:32 AM EDT, 09/25/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( SPY ) was down by 0.1% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Wednesday's premarket activity as investors awaited economic data to gauge the likelihood of another US Federal Reserve rate cut.

US stock futures were also down, with S&P 500 Index futures declining 0.04%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures edging 0.01% lower, and Nasdaq futures slipping 0.2% before the start of regular trading.

US mortgage applications rose 11% in the week ended Sept. 20, reaching a more than two-year high, driven by an eighth consecutive weekly decline in mortgage rates, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday. Refinancing applications were up 20%, while new purchase applications increased by a seasonally adjusted 1%.

The new home sales bulletin will be released at 10 am ET, followed by the weekly EIA petroleum status report at 10:30 am ET.

The Atlanta Federal Reserve's Survey of Business Uncertainty for September is slated to be released at 11 am ET, while Fed Governor Adriana Kugler speaks at 4 pm ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was down nearly 1% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF ( BITO ) was 1% lower.

Power Play:

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF ( IYE ) edged up 0.01%, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLE ) was down by 0.2%.

Vertex Energy's ( VTNR ) shares were down more than 54% before the bell Wednesday after the company said overnight that it commenced Chapter 11 "cases" in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Winners and Losers:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLK ) retreated 0.2%. The iShares US Technology ETF ( IYW ) was marginally higher at 0.02%, and the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF ( IGM ) was up 0.04%. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF ( XSD ) was inactive, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF ( SOXX ) retreated 0.3%.

Banzai International ( BNZI ) shares were down more than 30% in recent Wednesday premarket activity after the company said Tuesday it agreed to sell about 1.2 million common shares and warrants to purchase up to 2.4 million shares at a purchase price of $4.25 per share or pre-funded warrants in a private placement worth about $5 million.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLV ) retreated 0.02%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund ( VHT ) was flat while the iShares US Healthcare ETF ( IYH ) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF ( IBB ) was flat.

Emergent BioSolutions ( EBS ) stock was up more than 12% pre-bell after the company said it received about $400 million in orders for its smallpox and mpox vaccine products.

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLI ) was flat while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund ( VIS ) and the iShares US Industrials ETF ( IYJ ) were inactive.

Southland Holdings ( SLND ) shares were up more than 10% before the opening bell after the company said that its subsidiary, Oscar Renda Contracting, was awarded a $132 million contract to build a new water treatment plant for the Bureau of Reclamation.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLP ) was flat, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was inactive. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ( IYK ) was up 0.2%, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLY ) lost 0.2%. The VanEck Retail ETF ( RTH ) and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ( XRT ) were inactive.

Trip.com's ( TCOM ) stock was down 5% pre-bell after Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that investor Prosus has fully sold its stake in the Chinese online travel agency in a $743 million block trade.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLF ) gained 0.1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ( FAS ) was up 0.4%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ( FAZ ) was 0.5% lower.

BankUnited ( BKU ) said Tuesday it had appointed Beth Hosen as the head of treasury management. The company's shares were down 1.1% pre-bell Wednesday.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell by 1.3% to $70.66 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 1.8% at $2.60 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund ( USO ) lost 1.2%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) gained 0.3%.

Gold futures for December were up 0.1% at $2,679.20 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures fell 0.9% to $32.15 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares ( GLD ) retreated 0.3%, and iShares Silver Trust ( SLV ) was 1% lower.