08:09 AM EDT, 04/11/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 0.4% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.3% lower in Thursday's premarket activity, as traders exercised caution ahead of the release of another key inflation report.

US stock futures were also lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.5%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures losing 0.3% before the start of regular trading.

The March PPI report and the weekly jobless claims bulletin will be released at 8:30 am ET. The weekly EIA domestic natural gas supplies bulletin posts at 10:30 am ET.

New York Federal Reserve President John Williams speaks at 8:45 am ET, Boston Fed President Susan Collins speaks at noon ET, and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic speaks at 1:30 pm ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was up by 1% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.2% higher.

Power Play:

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) retreated 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) gained 0.1%, the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive, and the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was 0.4% lower.

Rallybio ( RLYB ) shares were up more than 92% premarket after the company announced late Wednesday a collaboration with Johnson & Johnson ( JNJ ) to develop therapies for fetal and neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia, with Johnson & Johnson Innovation investing $6.6 million in Rallybio ( RLYB ).

Winners and Losers:

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was flat, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) and the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) were inactive. The Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) slipped 0.4%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was down by 1%.

Rent the Runway ( RENT ) shares traded up more than 30% pre-bell after the company reported fiscal Q4 financial results late Wednesday that exceeded analysts' estimates.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) retreated by 0.6%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was down 1.6%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 1.7% higher.

BitFuFu ( FUFU ) shares were up nearly 10% pre-bell Thursday after the company reported higher income and revenue for 2023.

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) retreated 0.5%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was 1% higher and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was marginally declining.

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises ( BW ) shares gained more than 6% before the opening bell after the company said Wednesday it was increasing its outlook for adjusted EBITDA in 2024 to $105 million to $115 million, from its prior forecast of $100 million to $110 million.

Technology

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

Endava ( DAVA ) shares were down 2.2% in recent Thursday premarket activity after the company said late Wednesday it has completed the acquisition of GalaxE Group following the expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) each advanced marginally by 0.02%.

Trio Petroleum ( TPET ) shares were more than 33% higher before Thursday's opening bell following the company's operational update on its oil-producing assets in Monterey County, California, and reported stable combined oil production of 75 barrels per day from oil wells at Presidents Field and McCool Ranch Field.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down by 0.5% at $85.79 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas retreated 1.5% to $1.85 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) lost 0.7% and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.9% lower.

Gold futures for June advanced 0.3% to $2,356 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures were up by 0.1% to $28.08 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) gained 0.4%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 0.3% higher.