Futures lag after tech rally; Nvidia continues to climb

(Reuters) – S&P 500 and Dow futures were little changed on Thursday as investors awaited new data to gauge the strength of the U.S. labor market, while Nasdaq futures edged higher, AI frontrunner Nvidia’s gains bolstering optimism around the tech sector.

A tech rally on Wednesday pushed the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to all-time highs, as a series of weakening economic data bolstered bets that the Federal Reserve could begin easing policy sooner than expected.

Large-cap technology stocks were the main driver of the rise, with the technology sector gaining nearly 2.6% as Treasury yields fell. Stocks including Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Apple were down between 0.04% and 0.3% in pre-market trading.

However, chipmaker Nvidia rose 1.0%, after crossing a $3 trillion market valuation in the previous session, allowing it to overtake Apple as the second most valuable company in the world.

Gains for Nvidia and other AI-related players have been the main driver of Wall Street’s recent rally, with the chipmaker accounting for about a third of the S&P 500’s gains, or more than 12% since the start of the year. ‘year, even as investors grapple with concerns about higher U.S. interest rates for longer.

“The fact that Nvidia is now worth more than Apple is striking…there is a sense that as long as Nvidia’s stock price is rising, investors are happy and all is well in the markets,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. .

On the macroeconomic front, May data on private sector employment suggests an easing of tensions in the labor market, ahead of the crucial non-farm payrolls report due on Friday.

Traders now see a nearly 67% chance of a rate cut in September, according to the CME’s FedWatch tool, and have forecast about two cuts this year, according to LSEG data.

Forecasters polled by Reuters also expect two cuts, but there is a significant risk that the Fed will go for just one or none.

Data on weekly jobless claims and international trade figures for April will be due later on Thursday.

As of 5:54 a.m. ET, the Dow e-minis were down 17 points, or 0.04%, the S&P 500 e-minis were down 1.75 points, or 0.03%, and the e-minis were down 1.75 points, or 0.03%. -minis of the Nasdaq 100 were up 8.5 points, or 0.04%.

Among individual names, Lululemon Athletica jumped 7.1% after beating first-quarter profit and revenue expectations on Wednesday, as its China-based business helped offset a slowdown in North America.

Meanwhile, Victoria’s Secret lost 2.5% after reporting a decline in first-quarter profit and revenue after markets closed Wednesday.

(Reporting by Lisa Mattackal in Bangalore; Editing by Pooja Desai)