08:56 AM EDT, 07/03/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US equity futures were flat before Wednesday's opening bell as traders refrained from making big bets ahead of the Independence Day holiday.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures, the S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures all slipped around 0.1%.

US equity markets will close early at 1 pm ET Wednesday and will remain closed on Thursday for Independence Day.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 0.2% at $86.37 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate up 0.1% at $82.94 per barrel, on signs of dwindling US stockpiles. Data from industry group American Petroleum Institute showed a 9.163 million drawdown in the country's crude inventories, according to media reports.

Private payrolls based on ADP Institute's employment report, released at 8:15 am ET, increased by 150,000 in June, lower than estimates compiled by Bloomberg for a 165,000 gain.

The US trade deficit, released at 8:30 am ET, widened to $75.1 billion in May from $74.5 billion in April, compared with estimates for a larger $76.3 billion gap. New unemployment claims rose to 238,000 in the week ended June 29 from 234,000 claims in the prior week, compared with estimates for a smaller increase to 235,000.

Factory orders, slated for 10 am ET, are expected to rise 0.2% in May following April's 0.7% gain. Forecasters see the Institute for Supply Management's Services index coming in at 52.6 for June versus May's 53.8.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 1.3% higher, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 1.2% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.5% lower. Meanwhile, UK's FTSE 100 increased 0.4%, and Germany's DAX index rose 0.9% in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, shares of CureVac ( CVAC ) were 18% higher pre-bell after the company secured a new licensing agreement with GSK (GSK). DouYu ( DOYU ) shares advanced 30% after the company declared a special dividend of $9.76 per American depositary share.

On the losing side, Simulations Plus ( SLP ) shares were down 6% after the company reported lower fiscal Q3 earnings and trimmed its 2024 earnings guidance.