Stock futures rose Wednesday as Salesforce and Marvell Technology led tech shares higher on the back of strong quarterly earnings. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 164 points, or 0.4%. S&P 500 futures climbed 0.3%, and Nasdaq-100 futures jumped 0.7%. Salesforce climbed 13% after the company posted fiscal third-quarter revenue that beat estimates. Chipmaker Marvell also beat earnings expectations and issued strong fourth-quarter guidance, advancing 13%. Wall Street is coming off a mixed session, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq eking out small gains to record levels, while the Dow fell slightly. The major averages have had a tepid start to the month compared to the major averages’ strong November advance following Donald Trump’s victory at the polls. However, the rally is likely to pick up again this month, according to LPL Financial portfolio strategist George Smith. “Turning the calendar ahead to December, momentum could continue for stocks as historically it has been a good month for stock market seasonals,” he said. “These strong returns are historically often back-end loaded.” A report released on Wednesday morning from ADP revealed that private payrolls grew less than expected in November. Companies added just 146,000 on the month, while economists polled by Dow Jones had estimated growth of 163,000 positions. On the Federal Reserve front, Chair Jerome Powell will be speaking in New York in a moderated discussion Wednesday afternoon. U.S. Treasury yields were higher on Wednesday as investors awaited labor data due this week. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was last higher by nearly 4 basis points at 4.256%. Meanwhile, the 2-year Treasury yield rose by 2 basis points to 4.192%. South Korean markets fell Wednesday as pressure mounted on President Yoon Suk Yeol to step down after he imposed and then lifted a martial law decree within hours. The country’s Kospi index dropped 1.44% to end at 2,464, and the Kosdaq fell 1.98% to 677.15, recovering some losses after dropping over 2% earlier in the day. Other Asia-Pacific markets were trading lower as investors digested events in South Korea. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended nearly flat at 39,276.39, while the Topix dropped 0.47% to 2,740.6. Mainland China’s CSI 300 fell 0.54% to end trading at 3,930.56. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was trading down 0.1%, at 19,730 in its final hour of trade. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.38% to end the trading day at 8,462.6. Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday, with traders expecting OPEC+ to announce an extension to supply cuts this week while heightened geopolitical tensions continue to dominate market sentiment. Brent crude futures were up 5 cents, or 0.07%, at $73.67 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 4 cents, or 0.06%, to $69.90. On Tuesday, Brent posted its biggest gain in two weeks, rising by 2.5%. Gold held steady on Wednesday as safe-haven demand countered a slight recovery in the U.S. dollar while markets await U.S. jobs data and comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell for clues on the U.S. central bank’s policy outlook. Spot gold was steady at $2,644.48 an ounce. U.S. gold futures were down 0.1% at $2,666.30. The dollar index reflected strength that makes dollar-priced bullion costlier for buyers with other currencies.
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