WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing
to a roughly flat open on Wednesday, with stocks likely to show a lack of
direction after ending the previous session mixed.

U.S. stocks closed mixed on Tuesday after a cautious session, as investors
looked ahead to the release of some crucial U.S. data, including a report on
consumer income and spending, for more clarity about the outlook for Federal
Reserve's interest rates.

Among the major averages, the Dow settled with a loss of 299.05 points or 0.76
percent, at 39,112.16. The Nasdaq climbed up 220.84 points or 1.26 percent, to
17,717.65, while the S&P 500 ended up by 21.43 points or 0.39 percent, at
5,469.30.

Nvidia rallied nearly 7 percent, rebounding after recent losses. Meta Platforms,
Alphabet, Apple Inc., Eli Lilly, Micron Technology, Uber Technologies, Arista
Networks, Palo Alto Networks, Dell, and Airbnb also posted strong gains.

Boeing, Nike, Goldman Sachs, IBM, Pfizer, McDonalds Corporation, Wells Fargo,
Bank of America, Home Depot and Johnson & Johnson declined sharply.

Walmart ended lower by more than 2 percent, after the company's CFO flagged the
second quarter as the 'most challenging quarter'.

On the economic front, the Chicago Fed's measure of overall economic activity
and related inflationary pressure in the United States rose in May for the first
time in three months, survey results showed.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index, or CFNAI, rose to +0.18 in May from
-0.26 in April, which was revised from -0.23.

U.S. house prices rose less than expected in April, after stagnating in the
previous month, latest data from the Federal Housing Financing Agency showed.

The seasonally adjusted house price index increased 0.2 percent from the
previous month. Economists had forecast a 0.3 percent gain. March's 0.1 percent
increase was revised down to 0.0 percent.

House prices rose 6.3 percent year-on-year in April, which was more than double
the 3.1 percent gain registered in the same month last year.

Survey data from the Conference Board showed consumer confidence in the U.S.
eased slightly in June as households' economic expectations eroded. The
Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index fell to 100.4 from 101.3 in May.
Economists had expected a reading of 100.

The Expectations Index, which mirrors consumers' short-term outlook for income,
business, and labor market conditions, slid to 73.0 from 74.9 in May.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are climbing $0.56 to $81.39 a barrel after falling $0.80 to
$80.83 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $2,328.70,
down $2.10 compared to the previous session's close of $2,330.80. On Tuesday,
gold slid $13.60.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 160.32 yen compared to the
159.70 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the
euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0682 compared to yesterday's $1.0714.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Wednesday as a rebound in tech stocks helped
offset hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials.

Amid much uncertainty about the interest-rate outlook, investors braced for the
release of key U.S. inflation reading, due later this week for directional cues.

Federal Reserve governor Michelle Bowman has warned of upside risks to the
inflation outlook and reiterated the need to keep borrowing costs elevated 'for
some time'.

Her counterpart Lisa Cook said that the timing of any rate adjustment will
depend on how economic data evolve and what they imply for the economic outlook
and balance of risks.

The dollar edged higher amid anxiety over upcoming French elections and
escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Gold edged lower on dollar strength while oil prices rose despite industry data
showing a surprise jump in U.S. stockpiles.

Chinese markets recovered from an early slide to end notably higher.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite index rose 0.76 percent to 2,972.53 while Hong
Kong's Hang Seng index ended marginally higher at 18,089.93.

Japanese markets led regional gains as tech stocks tracked their U.S. peers
higher. The Nikkei average closed up 1.26 percent at 39,667.07, after having
reached its highest level since April 12 earlier.

The broader Topix index settled 0.56 percent higher at 2,802.95. The dollar
traded near the 160-yen mark amid speculation the Bank of Japan could hike rates
and outline major cuts to its bond-buying program in July.

Advantest, which counts Nvidia among its customers, soared 7 percent. Tokyo
Electron rallied 3.6 percent and Screen Holdings added 2.1 percent.

Seoul stocks advanced, driven by gains in the tech sector. The Kospi average
added 0.64 percent to close at 2,792.05.

Chipmaker SK Hynix surged 5.3 percent and Hanmi Semiconductor rallied 4 percent,
buoyed by a rally in tech stocks on Wall Street overnight.

Australian markets fell notably after data showed consumer inflation in the
country rose to a six-month high in May, increasing the odds of an RBA rate hike
in August.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.71 percent to 7,783, dragged down by mining
and financial stocks. The broader All Ordinaries index finished 0.67 percent
lower at 8,022.90.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index rallied 1.01 percent
to 11,835.02.

Europe

European stocks were moving higher on Wednesday as a rebound in tech stocks on
Wall Street overnight outweighed hawkish comments from Federal Reserve
officials.

Investors also shrugged off the results of a closely watched survey that showed
German consumer confidence is set to deteriorate in July as the economy
struggles to gain momentum.

After rising for four straight months, the consumer climate index dropped
unexpectedly to -21.8 in July from -21.0 in June, the survey published jointly
by GfK and the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions showed. The score was
forecast to climb to -19.4.

Amid much uncertainty about the interest-rate outlook, investors braced for the
release of key U.S. inflation reading, due later this week for further
direction.

The pan European STOXX 600 rose 0.4 percent to 519.62 after falling 0.2 percent
on Tuesday.

The German DAX climbed 0.7 percent, France's CAC 40 added 0.2 percent and the
U.K.'s FTSE 100 was up half a percent.

Eurozone bond yields continued to advance due to political uncertainty resulting
from changes in the partisan landscape in the region.

In corporate news, Gelion shares surged 31 percent in London after the
Anglo-Australian battery innovator said it has signed a Joint Development
Agreement with Glencore International AG, a diversified resource company.

Miners Anglo American, Antofagasta, BHP and Glencore rose 1-2 percent.

Oil & gas giant BP Plc rose 0.7 percent and Shell edged up 0.3 percent as oil
prices rose despite industry data showing a small build in U.S. crude
inventories.

Meal delivery company Deliveroo rallied 3.6 percent after reports of takeover
interest from U.S. rival DoorDash.

Checkit, an augmented workflow and smart sensor automation company, fell 2.4
percent after it decide not to make an offer to acquire Crimson Tide.

Volkswagen fell 1.5 percent after the German automaker announced $5 billion
investment in Rivian, the American EV maker, in a joint venture.

U.S. Economic Reports

The Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on new home sales in
the month of May at 10 am ET. Economists expect new home sales to rise to an
annual rate of 640,000 in May after tumbling to a rate of 634,000 in April.

At 10:30 am ET, the Energy Information Administration is due to release its
report on oil inventories in the week ended June 21st.

Crude oil inventories are expected to decrease by 3.0 million barrels after
falling by 2.5 million barrels in the previous week.

The Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month's
auction of $70 billion worth of five-year notes at 1 pm ET.



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