08:28 AM EDT, 09/17/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( SPY ) was up 0.2% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.4% higher in Tuesday's premarket activity, ahead of the US Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy-setting meeting starting today.

US stock futures were also higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.3%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.4% before the start of regular trading.

The August retail sales bulletin will be released at 8:30 am ET, followed by the August industrial production release at 9:15 am ET.

The business inventories July report and the Housing Market Index for September are due at 10 am ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 2.1% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF ( BITO ) was 2.3% higher.

Power Play:

Industrial

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

Draganfly ( DPRO ) stock was up 5% before the opening bell after the company said an oil and gas company had selected Draganfly ( DPRO ) and Nightingale Security to develop an automated drone system for infrastructure monitoring.

Winners and Losers:

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLV ) advanced 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund ( VHT ) was inactive while the iShares US Healthcare ETF ( IYH ) slipped 0.2%. The iShares Biotechnology ETF ( IBB ) was inactive.

Nuvalent ( NUVL ) shares were down nearly 2% premarket after the company said late Monday it priced an underwritten public offering of 5 million Class A common shares at $100 apiece for expected gross proceeds of $500 million.

Energy

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

Greenfire Resources ( GFR ) shares were up 3.3% before Tuesday's opening bell after Waterous Energy Fund Management said Monday that it agreed to acquire a more than 43% stake in Greenfire from Allard Services, Annapurna and Modro Holdings for 327.8 million Canadian dollars ($241.1 million).

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLK ) advanced 0.8%, and the iShares US Technology ETF ( IYW ) was flat, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF ( IGM ) was up 1.9%. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF ( XSD ) was inactive, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF ( SOXX ) rose by 1%.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) shares were up 1.8% in recent Tuesday premarket activity after the company said late Monday the board increased its quarterly dividend by 10% to $0.83 per share and approved a new stock repurchase plan for up to $60 billion.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLP ) was down 0.4%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) slipped 0.2%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ( IYK ) was flat. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLY ) and the VanEck Retail ETF ( RTH ) were inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ( XRT ) was 0.5% higher.

Polestar (PSNY) shares were up 1.7% pre-bell after the company said it has regained compliance with Nasdaq's minimum bid price rule for continued listing on the stock exchange.

Financial

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

Upstart Holdings ( UPST ) shares were up 1.4% pre-bell after the company priced a private placement to eligible purchasers of $375 million of 2% convertible senior notes due 2029.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 0.1% to reach $70.17 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 0.2% at $2.38 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund ( USO ) retreated by 0.1%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) advanced by 0.7%.

Gold futures for December were down 0.1% at $2,605.20 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures slipped 0.1% to reach $31.10 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares ( GLD ) declined by 0.2%, and iShares Silver Trust ( SLV ) was 0.1% higher.