Wall Street On Track For Weaker Start As Traders Eye Data Deluge - Why This Strategist Is Convinced That Positive Trends Will Continue

U.S. stock futures showed jitteriness on Thursday as traders await a slew of economic catalysts that may offer insight into the economy's resilience.  Any piece of economic evidence that does not support the case for follow-on rate cuts could set off a risk-off mode in the market.

Despite the rally broadening talks, the mega-cap stocks have been holding the market together, thanks to the artificial intelligence (AI) chatter circulating. The steady stream of data center investment news that flowed in September has given investors a reason to stay invested even in an overbought market. In a recent note, fund manager Louis Navellier noted that the market's concentration has risen to a new high, with the top 10 stocks accounting for 41% of the S & P 500's market capitalization. 

As of 3:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, the Dow, S & P 500, Nasdaq 100, and Russell 2000 futures were all marginally to modestly lower.

Stocks declined for a second day on Wednesday, although the pullback was only modest, as traders used a spike in bond yield following a lukewarm reception to the Treasury's five-year note auction as a reason to sell shares.  

The SPDR S & P 500 ETF (SPY), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the S & P 500 Index, and the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) fell 0.32% and 0.35%, respectively. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) and the Shares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) retreated 0.40% and 0.92%, respectively.

On Thursday, traders are likely to focus on the following economic reports:

1. Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee's speech (8:20 a.m. ET)
2. Weekly initial jobless claims (8:30 a.m. ET)
3. Third estimate of second-quarter GDP report (8:30 a.m. ET)
4. Durable goods orders report (8:30 a.m. ET)
5. Advance trade balance report for August (8:30 a.m. ET)
6. New York Fed President John Williams' speech, followed by Kansas City Fed President Jeff Schmid (9 a.m. ET)
7. Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman's speech (10 a.m. ET)
8. Existing home sales report for August (10 a.m. ET)
9. Fed Governor Michael Barr's speech (1 p.m. ET)
10. Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan's speech (1:40 p.m. ET)
11. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly's speech (3:30 p.m. ET)

Key earnings reports due for the day include those from Accenture (ACN), Jabil (JBL), CarMax (KMX), BlackBerry (BB) and Costco (COST).

Despite the recent consolidation, Navellier remained confident of the market trajectory.“We've had a strong September, and the seasonal strength of the 4th quarter, which rises 74% of the time, usually surges into year-end,” he said, adding that the trend remains positive as more Fed cuts are expected.

The crude oil rally has stalled as the commodity was down modestly early Thursday, while gold futures rose but traded shy of their record. The 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield barely budged after Wednesday's rise. The U.S. dollar fell slightly against major counterparts.

Major Asian markets traded listlessly after Wall Street stocks closed negatively, with all eyes focused on key U.S. data releases.

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