U.S. Stocks Set To Open Lower As Traders Take Some Profits After Rally

Initial Jobless Claims Decline To 881,000

U.S. has just released new Initial Jobless Claims and Continuing Jobless Claims reports.

Initial Jobless Claims report indicated that 881,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits in a week. Analysts expected Initial Jobless Claims of 950,000.

Continuing Jobless Claims report was also better than expected. Continuing Jobless Claims declined to 13.25 million compared to analyst consensus of 14 million.

Later today, traders will have a chance to evaluate the Services PMI report for August. Analysts expect that Services PMI will increase from 50 in July to 54.8 in August.

S&P 500 futures are currently losing ground in premarket trading but are trying to recover losses after the release of better-than-expected employment reports.

WTI Oil Declines Below $41

Oil continues to lose ground after the release of the latest EIA Weekly Petroleum Status report. While crude oil inventories have declined by 9.4 million barrels due to the negative impact of Hurricane Laura, traders are worried that demand for gasoline is showing signs of weakness.

The driving season in the U.S. is about to end, and it is unclear whether demand for gasoline will continue to rebound.

In addition, the U.S. dollar is gaining ground against a broad basket of currencies, putting pressure on commodities. Just a few days ago, the U.S. Dollar Index tested yearly lows at 91.75 while it is currently trying to settle above the 93 level.

The sell-off in the oil market will likely put pressure on oil-related stocks which have already lagged the broader market in recent weeks.

Euro Area Retail Sales Decline By 1.3% Month-Over-Month

The negative data from the Euro Area has put some pressure on the world markets today.

Euro Area Retail Sales  declined by 1.3% month-over-month in July while analysts expected growth of 1.5%. Retail Sales’ growth in June was revised from 5.7% to 5.3%. On a year-over-year basis, Retail Sales were up by 0.4% compared to analyst consensus which called for growth of 3.5%.

The weak data is caused by the continued problems on the coronavirus front in Europe and implementation of various virus containment measures which increase consumers’ anxiety.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.