08:36 AM EDT, 03/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 0.2% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Monday's premarket activity, as investors grew wary after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's recent statement expressing a cautious approach to adjusting borrowing costs amid heightened anticipation for Tuesday's release of the Consumer Price Index report.

US stock futures were lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.1%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures retreating 0.3%, and Nasdaq futures slipping 0.1% before the start of regular trading.

In premarket action, bitcoin was up by 3% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 3.8% higher.

Power Play:

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) advanced 0.1% and the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was flat, while the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.

L.S. Starrett (SCX) ****gained 59% before the opening bell after the company said it has agreed to be acquired by an affiliate of MiddleGround Capital in a go-private deal for $16.19 per share in cash.

Winners and Losers:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) was down by 0.3%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.2% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 0.8%. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) lost 0.7%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) retreated 0.6%.

GDS Holdings ( GDS ) was up nearly 16% in recent Monday premarket activity after Bloomberg reported that Hillhouse Capital, Boyu Capital, and CDH Investments are nearing a deal to invest in GDS Holdings' ( GDS ) data center division outside of China.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) retreated 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was marginally lower by 0.01% while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was up by 1.3%. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.1% higher.

Fortrea Holdings ( FTRE ) was down 10% premarket after the company reported lower year-over-year Q4 adjusted earnings and said it has agreed to sell the assets of its Enabling Services segment.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was 2.2% lower, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was down by 0.2%.

EQT (EQT) was down 4%, while Equitrans Midstream ( ETRN ) was up nearly 9% before Monday's opening bell after the companies said EQT was buying back Equitrans in an all-stock deal to create a natural gas production and distribution company valued initially at $35 billion.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was up by 0.1%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was flat. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) was 0.3% lower, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) retreated marginally by 0.01%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was down by 1.7%, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) advanced by 1.8%.

Westport Fuel Systems ( WPRT ) traded up 4.6% pre-bell after saying it has signed an investment agreement to set up a joint venture with Volvo Group to accelerate the commercialization and global adoption of Westport's HPDI fuel system technology for long-haul and off-road applications.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) slipped 0.3%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was down 0.6%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 0.6% higher.

Bitfarms ( BITF ) was down 1.1% pre-bell Monday after the company said late Friday that it had entered into an at-the-market offering agreement with H.C. Wainwright & Co. for the sale of up to $375 million worth of the company's common stock.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated 0.5% to $77.65 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas fell by 0.8% at $1.79 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 0.6%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.5% lower.

Gold futures for April retreated 0.02% to $2,185.00 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures were flat at $24.55 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) were up 0.1%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was also 0.1% higher.