U.S. stocks were set to open lower Wednesday morning, giving back some of Tuesday's solid gains, after the U.S. bond market flashed a troubling signal about the U.S. economy.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials hurtled earthward 354 points, or 1.4%, to 25,960
Futures for the S&P 500 failed 38.25 points, or 1.3%, at 2,893.75
NASDAQ futures flopped 106.75 points, or 1.4%, to 7,641.25
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note on Wednesday broke below the two-year rate, an odd bond market phenomenon that has been a reliable indicator for economic recessions.
Bank stocks led the declines in the pre-market as it gets tougher for the group to make a profit lending money in such an environment. Bank of America and Citigroup both fell more than 3% in pre-market trading. J.P. Morgan dropped 2.8%.
In corporate news, Tencent, Macy's, and Canada Goose are among some of the companies expected to report their latest quarterly results before the opening bell.
Cisco Systems, Canopy Growth, and NetApp are some of the companies set to report their latest results after market close.
Investors also remained on edge about the U.S.-China trade war and its impact on the global economy as weaker-than-expected data in China deepened the gloom in the world's second-largest economy. Official data published Wednesday showed growth of China's industrial output slowed to 4.8% in July from a year earlier, marking the latest sign of faltering demand in the country.
The data came after the U.S. moved to delay tariffs on some Chinese imports in the previous session.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 1%, while in the Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index eked up 0.1%
Oil prices fell $1.51 to $55.59 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $11.60 to $1,525.70 U.S. an ounce.