S&P 500 futures fall 0.3% as voting begins in U.S. midterm elections
Key Facts
S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% in an Associated Press report on November 3, as investors awaited the outcome of the U.S. midterm elections. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 0.6% in the same report, signaling broader caution in premarket trading. The agency said oil rose after the United States carried out strikes it described as defensive against Iranian targets in the Strait of Hormuz. The moves came amid broader concern about spending on AI data centers and their ability to generate sufficient productivity and profits. Investors were also watching labor market data due later that day.
Reuters said S&P 500 futures were down 0.14% before cash trading began, while Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed. The agency linked pressure on stocks to AI concerns, weak results from major technology companies and capital spending targets, as voting began. Reuters described investors as closely watching the consequential election, while a fresh wave of AI concerns weighed on global stocks. Reuters' reading of futures differed from the Associated Press report, as each captured the move at the time it was published. Together, the moves reflected a wait for political results and economic signals that could affect the market's assessment of risk.
In bond and currency markets, the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries rose 1.2 basis points to 4.9064%, Reuters reported. By contrast, the dollar index fell to 101.69, after hitting its lowest level in a month on Monday, November 2. The moves show a divergence between the rise in the U.S. yield in the November 3 session and the dollar's weakness compared with its level in the previous session. Reuters offered no single explanation for the move, with the figures included in broader market coverage ahead of the election. This coincided with investors' focus on jobs data due later in the day.
U.S. stocks closed mixed on Monday, November 2, with the S&P 500 down 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite down 1.1%, while the Dow Jones rose 0.4%, according to the Associated Press. The agency linked the weakness in stocks to investor concerns about the AI sector, particularly questions about whether major technology companies' spending of hundreds of billions of dollars on data centers would generate enough productivity and profits to justify it. Reuters added that weak results from major technology companies and capital spending targets helped keep investors cautious ahead of the vote. Futures thus entered the election session after a day in which the S&P 500 and Nasdaq fell, while the Dow Jones gained. Concerns about returns on AI investment remained part of the backdrop to moves in global markets.
In energy markets, Brent crude settled at $104.77 a barrel on November 2, after a daily decline of 7.6%, according to the Associated Press. The agency said oil prices rose after U.S. strikes on Iranian targets in the Strait of Hormuz, a factor it cited in its coverage of the market move. EL7 data showed Brent closed at $106.56 on November 3, after closing at $104.77 the previous day. The November 3 close was therefore above the previous session's level, which followed a sharp loss, according to the agency. Oil's rise coincided with renewed attention from markets to risks tied to developments in the Strait of Hormuz.
The September Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, known as JOLTS, was scheduled for release on November 3 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calendar. The release was scheduled for the day voting began, as investors monitored indicators of labor demand alongside political developments. The report's result was not among the information available at the time of the market coverage, leaving its release as the economic development to watch that day. Labor market data added another item to the agenda, alongside moves in futures, bonds and oil. The data were scheduled for after the polls opened, according to the bureau's official timetable.