08:16 AM EDT, 04/03/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) slipped 0.1% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Wednesday's premarket activity, as bets now lean towards a smaller and later easing of rate cuts after strong economic data.

US stock futures were also lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.2%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.1%, and Nasdaq futures losing 0.3% before the start of regular trading.

For the week ending March 29, MBA reported a 0.6% decline in US mortgage applications, despite a slight decrease in 30-year fixed mortgage rates, continuing a trend from the previous week. Refinancing applications dropped by 2%, while new purchase applications saw a slight decrease of 0.1%.

The ADP Employment Report for March will be released at 8:15 am ET, followed by the S&P Global composite final PMI for March at 9:45 am ET, and the ISM Services Index for March at 10 am ET.

The EIA domestic oil inventories report will be released at 10:30 am ET.

Fed Governor Michelle Bowman will speak at 9:45 am ET, followed by Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee at noon ET.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will deliver a presentation entitled "Economic Outlook" at 12:10 pm ET at Stanford University.

Fed Vice Chair Michael Barr will speak at 1:10 pm ET, while Fed Governor Adriana Kugler is slated to speak at 4:30 pm ET.

In premarket action, bitcoin was up by 0.3% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.7% higher.

Power Play:

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) was flat. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) retreated 0.04%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 0.4% higher.

LAMF Global Ventures (LGVC) was up nearly 81% pre-bell Wednesday after the company and Nuvo Group said late Tuesday that LAMF's shareholders approved the business combination between the companies, Holdco Nuvo Group, Nuvo Assetco, and H.F.N Insight Merger.

Winners and Losers:

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) advanced 0.1%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) and the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) were inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) advanced marginally by 0.01%.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals ( VNDA ) shares were up more than 27% premarket after the company said late Tuesday its antipsychotic agent Fanapt has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the acute treatment of bipolar I disorder patients with manic or mixed episodes.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) gained 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) lost 0.2%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was 0.7% lower.

Cal-Maine Foods ( CALM ) traded up 6.8% pre-bell after the company reported forecast-beating fiscal Q3 earnings and sales late Tuesday.

Industrial

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

GEO Group ( GEO ) was down 2.2% before Wednesday's opening bell after the company said it intends to issue $1.2 billion in senior notes through a private offering, comprising $700 million secured notes due 2029 and $500 million unsecured notes due 2031.

Technology

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

Intel ( INTC ) was down more than 4% in recent Wednesday premarket activity a day after the company said that its chip foundry business suffered a 2023 operating loss of $7 billion on sales of $18.9 billion, widening a loss of $5.2 billion on $27.5 billion in sales a year earlier.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was up by 0.3%.

Comstock Resources ( CRK ) was up 2.8% before Wednesday's opening bell after the company said late Tuesday it priced an upsized private placement of $400 million of new 6.75% senior unsecured notes due 2029.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil gained 0.8% at $85.86 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas advanced 0.3% to $1.87 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) advanced nearly 1%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 1.2% higher.

Gold futures for June were 0.3% higher at $2,289.50 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures were up 1.6% to $26.34 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) lost 0.3%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) advanced 0.6%.