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Futures up: Dow 0.03%, S&P 500 up 0.1%, Nasdaq up 0.2%
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Humana up after raising annual profit forecast
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Visa falls after leaving full-year forecasts unchanged
(Updates with prices, analyst comment before the opening bell)
By Nikhil Sharma and Pranav Kashyap
July 30 (Reuters) - Wall Street was set for a steady
open on Wednesday, as investors assessed better-than-expected
GDP data, and awaited the Federal Reserve's policy decision and
key tech earnings.
Gross domestic product increased at a 3% annualized rate in
the second quarter, helped by subsiding imports, which accounted
for the bulk of the improvement, and a moderate increase in
consumer spending.
"The market's taking some reassurance from the headline
number, but the more you dig into it, the more concerned that
you get," said Ben Laidler, head of equity strategy at Bradesco
BBI.
"It puts the Fed in a tougher position with the rise coming
in higher than expected. There's a huge amount of tariff noise
in this reading."
The ADP National Employment Report, which comes ahead of
Friday's nonfarm payrolls, showed private payrolls rose 104,000
in July, compared with estimates for an increase of 75,000.
At 08:40 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 12 points, or
0.03%, Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 46.75 points, or 0.2%,
S&P 500 E-minis were up 6.5 points, or 0.1%.
While the market remained mostly steady, caution emerged
after President Donald Trump announced a 25% tariff on goods
imported from India starting from August 1.
Trump stands firm that the deadline approaching on Friday
will not be extended for any trading partner that still does not
have a deal in place.
Meanwhile, two days of U.S.-China negotiations ended in both
sides agreeing to seek an extension of their 90-day tariff
truce, which expires on August 12. U.S. officials said it would
be up to President Donald Trump to approve the extension.
South Korea was also lobbying to secure a trade deal ahead
of Trump's August 1 deadline as its officials met U.S. Commerce
Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington.
On Tuesday, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq snapped their record
run due to disappointing results from Dow components
UnitedHealth ( UNH ) and Merck ( MRK ).
Investors are now placing their bets on results from
megacaps to steer Wall Street to new highs. Microsoft ( MSFT )
and Meta Platforms ( META ) will report their results after the
market closes, while Amazon ( AMZN ) and Apple ( AAPL ) will
report on Thursday.
Shares of Starbucks ( SBUX ) jumped 5.4% in premarket
trading after the coffee chain operator reported a
higher-than-expected revenue jump in the third quarter.
Global payments processing company Visa fell 2.3%,
despite beating estimates for third-quarter earnings, as it kept
its annual net revenue growth forecast unchanged.
Investors will also closely monitor the Fed's interest rate
decision later in the day. While a "hold" verdict has largely
been priced in, attention will shift to Chair Jerome Powell's
comments for any clues about the future policy path.
The meeting comes amid mounting political pressure from the
White House to lower rates, despite Powell's stance to first
assess the impact of tariffs on inflation before making any such
move.
Among other earnings moves, Humana gained 10% after
the health insurer raised its annual profit forecast.
(Reporting by Nikhil Sharma and Pranav Kashyap in Bengaluru;
Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)