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* Futures up: Dow 0.02%, S&P 500 0.11%, Nasdaq 0.23%
By Arjun Panchadar
Nov 27 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were slightly
higher on Wednesday, as optimism around trade talks continued,
while investors waited for crucial domestic economic indicators
in a holiday-shortened week.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the United States was
in the "final throes" of work on a deal that would defuse a
prolonged trade war with China, but also underscored
Washington's support for protesters in Hong Kong, a potential
sore point with Beijing. Wall Street's main indexes have hit record highs
consistently this month on the back of hopes of a resolution to
the trade dispute, third-quarter earnings that have largely come
in above lowered expectations and a third interest rate cut by
the Federal Reserve this year.
Domestic data points have been fairly resilient as well in
the face of a slowing global economy. On Wednesday, investors
will watch for the Commerce Department's consumer prices report.
The core personal consumption expenditures price index,
excluding volatile food and energy components, is expected to
have risen 0.1% in October after remaining flat in the prior
month. The report is expected at 10 a.m. ET.
Separately, the department will also release the second
reading of third-quarter GDP, which is expected to remain
unchanged at 1.9%.
Trading volumes are expected to be light ahead of the
Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday and an early market close
on Black Friday.
At 7:05 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 6 points, or
0.02%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 3.5 points, or 0.11% and
Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 19 points, or 0.23%.
Among stocks, HP Inc HPQ.N rose 1.7% in premarket trading
after the company posted quarterly earnings above analysts'
estimates, as higher sales of personal computers and
workstations helped counter weakness in its printer business.
Under Armour Inc UAA.N gained 2.6% as Raymond James
upgraded the sportswear maker's shares to "strong buy" from
"outperform".
Tesla Inc TSLA.O was up 0.8% after Chief Executive Officer
Elon Musk suggested in a tweet that the automaker had received
250,000 orders for its electric pickup truck unveiled five days
ago. However, shares of Deere & Co DE.N dropped 3% as the farm
equipment maker posted lower quarterly earnings, hurt by trade
tensions and poor weather in the U.S. farm belt that have slowed
equipment purchases by farmers. Guess Inc GES.N fell 6% after the clothing retailer missed
quarterly revenue expectations and gave a disappointing
full-year forecast.