08:12 AM EDT, 03/14/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.4% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.5% higher in Thursday's premarket activity, as traders expect upcoming inflation data to offer insights into the Federal Reserve's future policy direction.

US stock futures were higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.3%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.5% higher before the start of regular trading.

Reports due at 8.30 am ET include the retail sales report, the producer price index report, and the weekly jobless claims bulletin. The January business inventories report will be released at 10 am ET, followed by the weekly EIA natural gas supplies bulletin posts at 10:30 am ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was down by 0.8% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.5% lower.

Power Play:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) was up by 0.5%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was flat, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was 0.2% higher. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) lost 0.9%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) gained 0.2%.

SentinelOne ( S ) fell more than 10% pre-bell after the cybersecurity company issued lower-than-expected fiscal 2025 guidance, late Wednesday.

Winners and Losers:

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was up by 0.2%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) was 0.1% higher. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) advanced 0.6%, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) gained 0.2%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was flat, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) advanced 0.1%.

Dollar General ( DG ) traded up 6.2% pre-bell after the company reported forecast-beating fiscal Q4 financial results.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) advanced 0.2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 0.9%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was down by 0.8%.

Futu Holdings ( FUTU ) was down 6.3% pre-bell Thursday after the financial services company reported Q4 net income of 6.31 Hong Kong dollars ($0.81) per diluted American depositary share, down from HK$6.80 a year earlier.

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) advanced 0.5% and the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was up 1.9%, while the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.

Trinseo ( TSE ) rose 5.8% before the opening bell after the company said late Wednesday that it has kicked off a sale process for its 50% ownership in Americas Styrenics, a joint venture with Chevron Phillips Chemical Company.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) advanced 0.2%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was flat while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was up 1.2%. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.2% higher.

First Wave BioPharma ( FWBI ) was up 3.8% premarket after the company said it had completed the acquisition of ImmunogenX in an all-stock deal with a fully diluted equity value of $104 million.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was 0.1% higher, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was up by 0.6%.

OPAL Fuels ( OPAL ) was up 1.7% before Thursday's opening bell after the company reported higher year-over-year Q4 revenue.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil advanced 0.9% to $80.40 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas retreated nearly 0.1% to $1.66 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) was up 0.8%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.1% higher.

Gold futures for April retreated 0.3% to $2,174 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures were up 0.4% at $25.25 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) slipped 0.2%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) gained 0.4%.