Stock futures inch lower after Wednesday’s big market rally

Stock futures inched lower in overnight trading Wednesday after the Dow Jones Industrial Average staged a comeback off its lowest level for the year.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones slipped 49 points, or 0.16%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures shed 0.19% and 0.26%, respectively.

The overnight moves came following a broad rally for stocks as the Bank of England said it would purchase bonds in an effort to help steady its financial markets and the cratering British pound. Sterling has stooped to record lows against the U.S. dollar in recent days.

It marked a stark shift from the aggressive tightening campaign many global central banks have undertaken to cope with surging inflation.

During regular trading on Wednesday, the Dow gained 548.75 points, or 1.88%, to 29,683.74, while the S&P 500 rose 1.97% to 3,719.04, after hitting a new bear market low on Tuesday. Both indexes snapped a six-day losing streak. The Nasdaq Composite was up 2.05%, closing at 11,051.64.

As stocks rose and the BOE shared its bond-buying plan, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped the most since 2020 after briefly topping 4%.

“If the market had a negative sign in front of it today, and not a positive sign, it wouldn’t surprise me,” said Liz Ann Sonders, Charles Schwab’s chief investment strategist. “The market’s going to do what it does on any single given day. You can attempt to sort of point to what might have sat behind it, but that’s just a parlor game. A lot of it is the market got really oversold and buyers stepped in.”

Wednesday’s rally put the major averages on pace to eke out small gains for the week, but they are still on track to cap off their worst month since June. The Nasdaq Composite is leading the monthly losses, down about 6.5%, while the Dow and S&P are on pace to close 5.8% and 5.9% lower, respectively.

On a quarterly basis, the Nasdaq is on track to break a two-quarter losing streak, while the Dow is headed for its third consecutive quarterly loss for the first time since the third quarter of 2015. The S&P is on pace for its third negative quarter in a row for the first time since its six-quarter negative streak that ended the first quarter of 2009.

Earnings continue Thursday with results from Nike, Bed Bath & Beyond and Micron Technology. Initial jobless claims and more speeches from Federal Reserve leaders are also due.