US pre-open: Futures slide ahead of FOMC minutes as earnings season begins

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is expected to open down approximately 56 points, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are set to begin the session seven and 15 points lower respectively.

Asian stocks closed on a mixed note, as concerns about a slowdown in the emerging markets resurfaced, although Chinese equities bucked the trend as they rallied after a week-long holiday.

However, the gains were not as wide as analysts had expected, which added to Wall Street’s jitters.

“After being off for a week that has seen a big rally elsewhere, there is some disappointment that China has not climbed more,” said analysts at Deutsche Bank.

On Thursday, investors could receive some insights on the Federal Reserve’s policy when, at 1900 BST, the US central bank releases the minutes of the meeting it held on 17 September.

“Markets have been buoyed by the idea the Fed will remain on hold for longer but there’s a risk that a hawkish tone taken in the minutes could put a rate rise this year back on the table,” said CMC Markets’ analyst Jasper Lawler.

Before that, market participants will analyse a report on initial jobless claims, with economists expecting the number of claimants to have fallen from 277,000 to 274,000 in the week to 3 October.

Earnings season kicks off

In company news, the earnings season gets unofficially underway when aluminium producer Alcoa reports quarterly earnings after the closing bell.

IT group EMC surged 7.90% in pre-market trading after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was in talks with technology company Dell over a possible merger.

Amazon rose 0.83% ahead of the bell after Bloomberg said the online retail giant was considering introducing a live, online TV service.

Meanwhile, US-listed shares of Deutsche Bank could be in focus after the bank warned late on Wednesday that it will take a €5.8bn charge and could cut its dividend this year.

Elsewhere, European stocks moved in tight ranges, while oil prices edged higher. West Texas Intermediate climbed 0.25% to $47.93 a barrel, while Brent rose 0.10% to $51.38 a barrel.

The dollar was broadly flat against the pound and the yen but fell 0.50% against the euro, while gold futures slid 0.09% to $1,144.53.