It looks like the Fed hangover will drag on into Friday.
Here are the four things you need to know before the opening bell rings in New York:
1. Reacting to the Fed: All European indexes are declining in early trading as regional markets get their first chance to react to the Federal Reserve’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged. Germany’s DAX index is leading the markets down with a fall of nearly 2%.
“Leaving US interest rates unchanged would normally be enough to see markets cheer at the prospect of cheap money for longer, but heightened concerns about external factors such as China, market volatility and deflation derailing a stateside recovery has resulted in an understandably cautious stance being adopted,” noted Mike van Dulken, head of research at Accendo Markets.
Most Asian markets ended the day with modest gains, but the Nikkei in Japan declined by 2%.
2. U.S. stocks: Stock futures are dipping lower.
Over the previous trading session, the Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 were down, losing 0.4% and 0.3% respectively. The Nasdaq inched up 0.1%.
“Financial markets priced a relatively low probability of a rate hike yesterday and the immediate reaction [to] the unchanged Fed rates was quite moderate,” explained Benjamin Dousa, a market analyst at SEB bank.
3. Potential market mover — Adobe: Investors should watch Adobe this morning. The shares are sinking by about 2% in extended trading after the company released earnings Thursday evening and said it was rejigging its management team.
4. Economic data: The U.S. Conference Board will post its monthly update of leading indicators at 10 a.m. ET. The composite index tracks business cycles, and it fell last month after four months of strong gains.
