Wall Street Under Pressure Following 3-Day Rally

(RTTNews) - Early indications suggest that Wall Street stocks may open Thursday's truncated session on a nervous note. The strong gains in the previous three sessions could render the mood cautious, given the uncertainty surrounding the economic recovery. That said, trading activity ahead of the long weekend owing to Christmas is expected to be light, with volumes tapering off since early this week.

Asian stocks closed mixed earlier in the global trading day, while the European markets are mixed in an abbreviated session. Oil and commodities continue to be northward bound as the dollar loses ground. Traders in the domestic markets could also keep an eye on the Labor Department's jobless claims report due ahead of the market open.

As of 6:15 am ET, the Dow futures are rising 3 points, while the S&P 500 futures are down 1 point and the Nasdaq 100 futures are receding 1.25 points.

U.S. stocks advanced notably on Wednesday, extending the gains for the third straight session, as oil rallied strongly and economic data came in mixed.

On the economic front, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its weekly jobless claims report for the week ended December 19th at 8:30 am ET. Economists expect claims to have declined to 270,000 from 271,000 in the previous week.

The Treasury is set to make announcements concerning the auctions of 2-year, 5-year and 7-year notes at 11 am ET.

In corporate news, Viacom (VIAB) recommended that its shareholders reject a mini-tender offer by TRC Capital to purchase up to 2.50 million shares of Viacom Class B shares at a price of $38.88 per share.

Journal Media (JMG) said it will hold a special meeting of its shareholders on March 1st, 2016 to vote on the proposal for its impending acquisition by Gannett Co. (GCI) for $12 per share in cash.

The major Asian averages ended mixed in thin pre-holiday trade, with most markets having a truncated session on account of the impending Christmas Holiday. Although the overnight gains on Wall Street and oil's gains provided an upward thrust, the Japanese and Chinese markets succumbed to a firmer yen and economic worries, respectively.

The Japanese market, which reopened after Wednesday's public holiday, retreated as the yen firmed up. The Nikkei 225 average ended down 97.01 points or 0.51 percent at 18,790. Australia's All Ordinaries closed the truncated session solidly higher, adding 62.60 points or 1.21 percent to 5,256, its highest level since December 3rd.

The Hong Kong market, which closed early ahead of Christmas, saw its key Hang Seng Index gain 97.54 points or 0.44 percent to over a 2-week high of 22,138. Meanwhile, China's Shanghai Composite Index ended down 23.60 points or 0.65 percent at 3,613.

On the economic front, the minutes of the Bank of Japan's November Monetary Policy Committee meeting showed that members view weakness from commodity-exporting economies as the primary downside risk. Members also noted that capital expenditure is increasing as industrial profits improve. The minutes also revealed that most members believe that the stimulus could be expanded if risks increase, dissuading firms from raising wages and prices.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda in a speech said the Japanese economy and price trends have turned favorable due to stimulus efforts. Kuroda sees further progress in the coming year.

The Conference Board reported that its leading economic indicators index for Australia edged down 0.1 percent month-over-month in October following a downwardly revised 0.3 percent drop in September.

European stocks started the abbreviated session on a mixed note, although the German market was closed for a holiday. The French CAC 40 Index is currently down 0.4 percent in holiday-thinned trade. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up 0.2 percent on the back of gains in mining and energy shares as oil prices climbed for a fourth day.

In economic releases, figures from the British Bankers' Association showed that UK house purchase approvals unexpectedly declined in November after a rebound in the previous month. On an annual basis, approvals rose 20 percent in the month.