08:03 AM EDT, 06/06/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( SPY ) edged up 0.03% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.1% higher in Thursday's premarket activity, as investors await the release of fresh economic data to gauge the potential for an interest rate cut.

US stock futures were mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures marginally higher, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.04%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.1% before the start of regular trading.

In May, US companies announced plans to cut 63,816 jobs, slightly down from April and significantly lower than a year ago, with the entertainment, leisure, and technology sectors experiencing the highest layoffs. Hiring intentions also declined sharply, with the lowest level of hiring announcements in a decade, indicating a stalling labor market, according to data released by Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday.

The weekly jobless claims bulletin, the April international trade in goods and services report, and the Q1 productivity and costs release are all slated to be released at 8:30 am ET.

The EIA domestic natural gas supplies bulletin posts at 10:30 am ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was down by 0.4% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF ( BITO ) was 0.3% lower.

Power Play:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLK ) was flat, while the iShares US Technology ETF ( IYW ) and the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF ( IGM ) were inactive. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF ( XSD ) was inactive, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF ( SOXX ) rose by 0.4%.

Sprinklr ( CXM ) shares declined more than 22% in premarket activity Thursday after the company reported overnight a fiscal Q2 guidance miss and cut its sales outlook for the full financial year.

Winners and Losers:

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLP ) was down 0.1%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was inactive. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ( IYK ) was inactive, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLY ) was flat. The VanEck Retail ETF ( RTH ) and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ( XRT ) were inactive.

Lululemon Athletica's ( LULU ) shares traded up more than 8% pre-bell after the company reported higher earnings and sales for fiscal Q1, and raised its full-year earnings forecast range.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF ( IYE ) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLE ) was up by 0.1%.

Dorian LPG ( LPG ) shares were down more than 6% before Thursday's opening bell after the company said late Wednesday it plans to sell 2 million shares in an underwritten public offering.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLV ) was down 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund ( VHT ) and the iShares US Healthcare ETF ( IYH ) were inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF ( IBB ) gained 0.1%.

Sagimet Biosciences ( SGMT ) was up 5% premarket Thursday after the company presented positive results from a phase 2b clinical trial of its lead drug candidate, denifanstat, in patients with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis.

Industrial

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

ABM Industries ( ABM ) shares gained 5% before the opening bell after the company reported higher fiscal Q2 financial results and lifted its guidance for fiscal 2024 adjusted EPS.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLF ) retreated marginally by 0.1%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ( FAS ) advanced marginally by 0.01%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ( FAZ ) was flat.

Riot Platforms ( RIOT ) was down 2% pre-bell after the company said Wednesday it has increased its stake in Bitfarms ( BITF ) to 12% from 11.63% after it acquired about 1.5 million common shares of Bitfarms ( BITF ) for a total purchase price of about $3.6 million.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil advanced 0.6% to $74.51 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was 0.3% higher at $2.77 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund ( USO ) gained 0.4%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) rose 0.5%.

Gold futures for August were 0.2% higher at $2,379.20 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures gained 1.1% to $30.42 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares ( GLD ) advanced 0.2%, and iShares Silver Trust ( SLV ) was 1.1% higher.