US pre-open: Futures point to early gains before first day of September trading

Wall Street futures were in the green before the bell on Wednesday as major indices looked set to continue trading higher after finishing off August better than they'd started.

As of 1230 BST, Dow Jones futures were up 0.30%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures traded 0.33% and 0.20% higher, respectively.

The Dow closed 39.11 points lower on Tuesday as a number of data points saw investors slightly reevaluate their positions.

In focus on Wednesday, reopening plays like Las Vegas Sands and Exxon Mobil traded higher ahead of the open, while bank shares also were also recording early gains, driven by the likes of Citigroup and Bank of America.

A number of data points, including employment change figures from the ADP and multiple manufacturing PMIs, will also draw an amount of attention from market participants later in the session.

Traders will also keep one eye on OPEC's meeting with its allies.

On the macro front, mortgage applications fell in the seven days ended 27 August, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, dropping 2.4% week-on-week as the average contract interest rate for traditional 30-year mortgages was unchanged at 3.03%.

Still to come, ADP employment change numbers will be posted at 1315 BST, while IHS Markit's final August PMI will be released at 1445 BST and last month's ISM manufacturing PMI was slated for release at 1500 BST, as was July construction spending data.

In the corporate space, Campbell Soup issued full-year profit guidance below expectations but also reported a second-quarter revenue beat, while gunmaker Smith & Wesson will report earnings after the close on Wednesday.