08:38 AM EDT, 04/17/2024 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was up 0.4% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% higher in Wednesday's premarket activity, as traders focus on upcoming earnings.

US stock futures were also higher, with S&P 500 Index futures up 0.4%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advancing 0.3%, and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.2% before the start of regular trading.

Despite higher mortgage rates, MBA US mortgage applications saw a 3.3% increase in the week ended April 12, following a slight uptick the previous week. Refinancing applications rose by 0.5%, and new purchase applications grew by 5%.

The Atlanta Fed Business Inflation Expectations report for April will be released at 10 am ET, followed by the weekly EIA domestic oil inventories bulletin posts at 10:30 am ET.

The Federal Reserve publishes its Beige Book, a compendium of economic reports from the 12 regional banks, at 2 pm ET.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester speaks at 5:30 pm, and Fed Governor Michelle Bowman at 7:15 pm.

In premarket action, bitcoin was up by 0.6% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.7% higher.

Power Play:

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) advanced 0.3%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was flat while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was also inactive.

Sage Therapeutics ( SAGE ) was down more than 27% premarket after the company said that the phase 2 study of its investigational drug dalzanemdor for the treatment of mild cognitive impairment in patients with Parkinson's Disease failed to meet its primary endpoint and did not demonstrate "any meaningful differences" in the other exploratory endpoints compared with placebo.

Winners and Losers:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) advanced 0.2%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.1% lower, 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) retreated by 0.1%.

ASML Holding ( ASML ) was down nearly 5% in recent Wednesday premarket activity after the company reported lower year-over-year fiscal Q1 earnings and revenue.

Industrial

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

APi Group ( APG ) shares fell 4% before the opening bell after the company said it priced an underwritten public offering of 11 million common shares at $37.50 per share for gross proceeds of about $412.5 million.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) gained 0.5%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was up 1.2%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 1.2% lower.

Travelers (TRV) was down 2.3% pre-bell Wednesday after the company reported Q1 core diluted earnings of $4.69 per share, which trailed Capital IQ analysts' expectations.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was flat, 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) gained 0.5%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) retreated 0.3%.

Toyota Motor ( TM ) shares declined 1.1% pre-bell following a Reuters report saying the company has recalled over 135,000 Prius hybrid cars in Japan due to faulty rear door handles.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was inactive, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) slipped by 0.1%.

0.7% Sunoco LP ( SUN ) was up 0.7% before Wednesday's opening bell after the company said it had completed the acquisition of liquid fuels terminals from Zenith Energy and the divestiture of 204 convenience stores to 7-Eleven.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was down by 0.5% at $84.95 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas fell by 3.8% to $1.67 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) lost 0.5%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was down 3%.

Gold futures for June declined by 0.2% to $2,403.60 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures were up by 0.6% to $28.54 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) retreated marginally by 0.02%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 0.9% higher.