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U.S. private payrolls beat expectations in April

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Super Micro Computer ( SMCI ) drops after Q3 revenue miss

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Amazon ( AMZN ) rises after Q1 results beat

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Futures down: Dow 0.21%, S&P 0.37%, Nasdaq 0.54%

(Updated at 08:26 a.m. ET/ 1226 GMT)

By Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan

May 1 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were set to open lower on

Wednesday as chip stocks led losses after downbeat results and

markets exercised caution ahead of more economic data and the

Federal Reserve's interest rate decision later in the day.

Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ) shed 5.9% in premarket

trading after its forecast for AI chip sales failed to impress

investors, while Super Micro Computer ( SMCI ) lost 10.6% as the

artificial intelligence server maker reported third-quarter

revenue below estimates.

The weak results pressured other chip stocks as well, with

Nvidia ( NVDA ) and Micron Technology ( MU ) down more than 1%

each.

Amazon.com ( AMZN ) outperformed other growth stocks to rise

1.5% on better-than-expected quarterly results as interest in

artificial intelligence helped drive cloud-computing growth.

Weighing on sentiment, the ADP National Employment report

showed U.S. private employment rose by 192,000 jobs last month,

signaling a still-tight labor market. Economists polled by

Reuters had expected an increase of 175,000 jobs in April.

Investors will now await more economic data during the day

to further gauge the state of inflation in the U.S. economy,

before tuning in to the Fed's interest rate decision at the end

of its two-day meeting.

"The Fed from a more credibility perspective has to

acknowledge that the last few months have not been helpful in

terms of data," said Russell Hackmann, president of Hackmann

Wealth Partners.

"While they're probably not going to explicitly talk about

the possibility of rate hikes, they have to really signal that

the possibility of rate cuts is on hold until we start getting

some more friendly inflation data."

On the docket for the day are the April S&P Global final

manufacturing PMI data shortly after the opening bell, the ISM

manufacturing PMI data and the JOLTS job openings figures, both

at 10 a.m. ET.

Money markets expect the U.S. central bank to stand pat on

rates later in the day, pricing in just about 29 basis points

(bps) of rate cuts this year, down from around 150 bps seen at

the start of 2024, according to LSEG data.

After a rough April, May will further test the performance

of equity markets as the first-quarter earnings season continues

and the interest rate outlook becomes clearer.

Over the last 50 years, the S&P 500 has gained an

average of 4.8% between November and April, and just 1.2%

between May and October, according to Reuters calculations,

giving rise to the popular market adage "Sell in May and Go

Away".

At 08:26 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 78 points,

or 0.21%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 18.5 points, or

0.37% and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 94.5 points, or

0.54%.

Among other movers, Starbucks ( SBUX ) dropped 13.2% as the

coffee giant cut its annual sales forecast and reported a fall

in same-store sales for the first time in nearly three years.

CVS Health ( CVS ) shed 12.3% after the healthcare giant

slashed its annual profit forecast and missed Wall Street

estimates for first-quarter earnings.

(Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan in

Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)