08:05 AM EDT, 08/14/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ( SPY ) was up 0.02% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.02% higher in Wednesday's premarket activity ahead of the key consumer price index report.

US stock futures were mixed, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.02%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures flat, and Nasdaq futures slipping 0.01% before the start of regular trading.

US mortgage applications rose 16.8% in the week ended Aug. 9, driven by a second consecutive drop in rates, with refinancing activity up 35% and purchase applications rising 3%, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday.

The latest consumer price index (CPI) report from Washington will be released at 8:30 am ET, followed by the EIA petroleum status bulletin at 10:30 am ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 0.4% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF ( BITO ) was 0.4% higher.

Power Play:

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLI ) retreated 0.3% while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund ( VIS ) and the iShares US Industrials ETF ( IYJ ) were inactive.

Serve Robotics ( SERV ) shares were up more than 19% before the opening bell after the company reported higher Q2 revenue and a narrowed net loss.

Winners and Losers:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLK ) was up 0.3%, and the iShares US Technology ETF ( IYW ) was 0.1% higher, 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 ) rose by 0.4%.

Qifu Technology ( QFIN ) shares were up more than 6% in recent Wednesday premarket activity after the company late Tuesday reported higher Q2 adjusted earnings and revenue.

Health Care

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

Cardinal Health ( CAH ) shares were up more than 6% premarket after the company reported higher fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLF ) advanced marginally by 0.02%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares ( FAS ) was up 0.3%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares ( FAZ ) was flat.

UBS (UBS) stock was up nearly 3% pre-bell Wednesday after the company reported higher Q2 revenue and agreed to sell Credit Suisse's US Mortgage Servicing business.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF ( IYE ) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLE ) was marginally up by 0.2%.

FLEX LNG ( FLNG ) shares were 2.3% higher before Wednesday's opening bell after the company reported Q2 adjusted earnings of $0.56 per diluted share, up from $0.52 a year earlier.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLP ) was up 0.1%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) gained 0.3%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF ( IYK ) was inactive, while the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund ( XLY ) lost 0.2%. The VanEck Retail ETF ( RTH ) and the SPDR S&P Retail ETF ( XRT ) were inactive.

Dole (DOLE) traded up 1% pre-bell after the company reported higher-than-expected Q2 results.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil retreated by 0.4% to $78.05 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas was up 1.1% at $2.17 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund ( USO ) fell 0.5%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund ( UNG ) was 0.6% higher.

Gold futures for December advanced 0.2% to $2,512.10 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures were up 0.7% at $27.98 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares ( GLD ) gained 0.3%, and iShares Silver Trust ( SLV ) was 0.1% higher.