The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 0.2% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Thursday's premarket activity amid key labor reports.
US stock futures were also lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.2%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 0.3% before the start of regular trading.
US employers announced plans to eliminate 35,553 jobs in December, a sharp decline from November and the lowest monthly total since July, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas on Thursday.
US nonfarm productivity increased 4.9% in the third quarter, coming in just below forecasts after a strong rise in the prior quarter, while unit labor costs declined for a second consecutive period, Labor Department data showed.
US initial jobless claims totaled 208,000, compared with expectations for 212,000 and a prior reading of 200,000.
The wholesale inventories report for October posts at 10 am, followed by the weekly EIA natural gas bulletin at 10:30 am.
In premarket activity, bitcoin was down by 1.2%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 1.3% lower, Ether ETF (EETH) retreated by 1.4%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) declined by 0.3%.
Power Play:
Industrial
The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) advanced 0.8%, the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) gained 0.6%, while the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.
Northrop Grumman (NOC) gained 8.7%, L3Harris Technologies (LHX) rose 7.8%, Lockheed Martin (LMT) increased 8.1%, and RTX (RTX) added 4.9% premarket Thursday after President Donald Trump proposed a $500 billion increase in annual military outlays.
Winners and Losers:
Energy
The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was inactive, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) was up by 0.4%.
Shell (SHEL) stock was down more than 2% before Thursday's opening bell after the company said it expects Q4 upstream production of 1.84 million to 1.94 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, up from 1.83 million in Q3.
Consumer
The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was up 0.1%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) was 0.8% higher. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) was inactive. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) lost 0.3%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was down 0.6%.
Constellation Brands (STZ) shares were up more than 1% pre-bell after the company reiterated its full-year outlook and reported better-than-expected fiscal Q3 results.
Health Care
The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) retreated 0.2%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was down 0.2%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) declined by 0.5%.
AbbVie (ABBV) said in a regulatory filing Wednesday that it expects an impact on Q4 due to charges related to acquired in-process research and development and other expenses.
Financial
The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) retreated by 0.3%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was down 0.8%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 1% higher.
Jefferson Capital (JCAP) shares were up more than 1% pre-bell after the company said it priced an underwritten secondary public offering of 10 million shares sold by existing stockholders at $20.50 per share.
Technology
The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) retreated 0.4%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.2% lower, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was down 0.2%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) increased 0.3%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) declined by 0.6%.
Apple (AAPL) shares fell more than 1% in recent premarket activity after Reuters reported that the Competition Commission of India told a court that calculating fines based on a company's global revenue would deter violations by multinational firms, countering Apple's legal challenge to the rule.
Commodities
Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 1.6% at $56.86 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas fell 1.7% to $3.47 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) gained by 1.1%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 2.8% lower.
Gold futures for February retreated by 0.6% to $4,437.80 an ounce on the Comex, and silver futures fell by 4% to $74.58 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) was down by 0.5%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 3.9% lower.
