Gold prices steady ahead of Fed decision; weekly weakness noted
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* Futures up: Dow 0.68%, S&P 0.52%, Nasdaq 0.35%
By Medha Singh
Aug 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stock futures rose on Wednesday after
Disney squeezed out a quarterly profit despite taking a
$5-billion charge due to the pandemic, while investors awaited
data on private payrolls and the service sector to gauge the
country's economic health.
Leading gains among the Dow's components in premarket trade,
Walt Disney Co DIS.N jumped 6.1% as revenue declines for its
parks and its media networks were not as bad as feared.
Better-than-expected corporate results and a surge in shares
of heavyweight technology companies have fueled a
stimulus-driven rally in Wall Street's main indexes and brought
the S&P 500 within 2.5% of its record high hit in February.
Investors' focus on Wednesday is on the ADP National
Employment Report, a precursor to the monthly jobs report on
Friday, which is expected to show private payrolls rose by 1.50
million in July after a strong rebound of 2.37 million in June.
ISM's non-manufacturing survey is also likely to show a
similar trend.
Investors have been concerned about signs that the U.S.
economic activity is stalling amid a surge in COVID-19
infections in parts of the country, strengthening the case for
more fiscal aid.
White House negotiators on Tuesday vowed to work "around the
clock" with congressional Democrats to try to reach a deal on
coronavirus relief package by the end of this week. At 6:11 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 182 points, or
0.68%, S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 17.25 points, or 0.52%
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 39 points, or 0.35%.
Moderna Inc MRNA.O , which is developing a COVID-19
vaccine, rose 2.3% ahead of its quarterly results.
Activision Blizzard ATVI.O raised its full-year forecast
for adjusted sales encouraged by a pandemic-driven surge in
gaming. Its shares fell 1.4% after closing at a record high on
Tuesday.