U.S. stock index futures were flat during early morning trading on Thursday after the major averages closed at records following commentary from the Federal Reserve in the prior session.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials took on 17 points to 36,052.
Futures for the S&P 500 squeezed nine points, or 0.2%, to 4,661.25
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite Index advanced 65.75 points, or 0.4%, to 15,982.75.
The S&P 500 is up 1.2% for the week, pushing the S&P 500’s year-to-date return up to 24% as the benchmark enters a seasonally strong part of the year for markets.
Qualcomm led pre-market gainers on the S&P 500, rallying nearly 7% following an earnings beat propelled by a 56% surge in smartphone chip sales. The company also provided strong guidance for the fourth quarter.
MGM shares gained nearly 5% after the casino operator announcing plans to sell the operations of its Mirage casino in Las Vegas to another operator. The company noted that no sales agreement had been reached and it did not mention any possible buyers.
Yet Moderna shares cratered after the drugmaker slashed its COVID-19 vaccine revenue outlook. The stock was last down about 11%
And Roku was under pressure, falling more than 7% after the streaming platform reported disappointing third-quarter revenue.
The central bank said it will begin to curb the pace of its monthly bond-buying program “later this month.” This marks the Fed beginning to remove the significant stimulus it’s provided since the pandemic took hold.
The buying will slow by $15 billion per month, which means the quantitative easing should end by the middle of 2022, although the Fed reiterated flexibility saying the amount could change if warranted.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei returned to trading with a gain of 0.9%, while Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rolled to a gain of 0.8%.
Oil prices gained $1.78 to $82.64 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices jumped $18.10 to $1,786.50 U.S. an ounce.