WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing
to a slightly lower open on Wednesday, with stocks likely to give back ground
after ending the previous session mostly higher.

Traders may look to cash in on yesterday's gains, which lifted the Nasdaq and
the S&P 500 to new record closing highs. The S&P 500 closed above 5,500 for the
first time ever.

Concerns about the outlook for the economy may also weigh on the markets after
payroll processor ADP released a report showing private sector employment in the
U.S. increased by slightly less than expected in the month of June.

ADP said private sector employment climbed by 150,000 jobs in June after rising
by an upwardly revised 157,000 jobs in May.

Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 160,000 jobs
compared to the addition of 152,000 jobs originally reported for the previous
month.

'Job growth has been solid, but not broad-based,' said ADP chief economist Nela
Richardson. 'Had it not been for a rebound in hiring in leisure and hospitality,
June would have been a downbeat month.'

With the more closely watched monthly jobs report looming, the Labor Department
also released a report showing a modest increase by first-time claims for U.S.
unemployment benefits in the week ended June 29th.

The report said initial jobless claims rose to 238,000, an increase of 4,000
from the previous week's revised level of 234,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 235,000 from the 233,000
originally reported for the previous week.

After struggling for direction until a little past noon on Tuesday, stocks began
climbing higher and continued to gain in strength to eventually end the day's
session a firm note.

Concerns about the outlook for interest rates rendered the mood cautious early
on in the session, with investors digesting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome
Powell's remarks at the ECB Forum and the JOLTS report that showed a slight
increase in job openings in the country.

Stocks moved higher after bond yields drifted down. The major averages all ended
on a firm note, with the Nasdaq outperforming the Dow and S&P 500.

The Dow ended with a gain of 162.33 points or 0.4 percent at 39,331.85. The S&P
500 settled at 5,509.01, gaining 33.92 points or 0.6 percent, while the Nasdaq
advanced 149.46 points or 0.8 percent, to 18,028.76.

Data from the Labor Department showed the number of job openings rose to 8.140
million in May, up 221,000 from a month earlier.

Redbook Research said the Redbook Index in the U.S. increased by 5.8 percent in
the week ending June 29, compared to the same week in the previous year.

Investors also noted Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at a central banking forum
in Sintra, Portugal. Powell expressed satisfaction with the progress on
inflation but said he wants to see more before being confident enough to start
cutting interest rates.

'We want to be more confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward 2
percent before we start the process of reducing or loosening policy,' he said.

Investors looked ahead to the release of the Labor Department's closely watched
monthly jobs report on Friday.

The report, which is expected to show a slowdown in the pace of job growth in
the month of June, could impact the outlook for interest rates.

On the political front, the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that former President
Donald Trump is entitled to immunity from federal prosecution for official
actions he took while in office has stoked speculation about the possibility of
another Trump presidency.

Tesla Inc. shares soared more than 10 percent, after the company reported higher
than expected sales in the April-June quarter. The electric vehicle maker said
it sold 436,956 vehicles in the latest quarter, down 4.8 percent compared to the
year-ago quarter. But the numbers were better than what analysts had forecast.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are inching up $0.16 to $82.97 a barrel after falling $0.57 to
$82.81 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $2,362.80,
up $29.40 compared to the previous session's close of $2,333.40. On Tuesday,
gold slipped $5.50.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 161.80 yen compared to the
161.44 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the
euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0774 compared to yesterday's $1.0745.

Asia

Asian stocks rose broadly on Wednesday as comments from Federal Reserve Chair
Jerome Powell reinforced expectations that the Fed will cut interest rates this
year.

Japanese markets led regional gains as the yen stayed near 38-year lows. The
dollar's retreat helped gold and oil prices push higher but the upside was
capped ahead of the release of the U.S. jobs report and upcoming elections in
France and the U.K.

China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped 0.5 percent to 2,982.38 after a private
survey showed services sector activity in the country cooled to the weakest in
eight months in June.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped 1.2 percent to 17,978.57, led by technology
stocks.

Japanese stocks rose for a fourth consecutive session as technology stocks
followed their U.S. peers higher.

The Nikkei 225 Index surged 1.3 percent to 40,580.76, while the broader Topix
Index settled 0.5 percent higher at 2,872.18.

Shin-Etsu Chemical, Advantest and Tokyo Electron rallied 2-3 percent, while
Screen Holdings soared 6.8 percent.

The USD/JPY pair reached a fresh 38-year high of 161.91 after the Jibun Bank
Japan Services PMI was revised downward to 49.4 in June.

Seoul stocks closed a tad higher on hopes for a possible U.S. rate cut. The
Kospi rose 0.5 percent to 2,794.01. Electric vehicle battery maker LG Energy
Solution surged 4.2 percent and Samsung SDI added 4.3 percent.

Australian markets closed higher amid strength in mining and energy stocks,
thanks to higher iron ore and crude oil prices on expectations of strong China
demand.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index edged up 0.3 percent to 7,7,39.90, while the
broader All Ordinaries Index gained 0.3 percent to close at 7,986.10.

Australian retail sales rose more than expected in May, adding to bets that the
Reserve Bank could raise interest rates in August.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index inched up 0.1
percent to 11,790.92.

Europe

European stocks have advanced on Wednesday as traders react to dovish comments
from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and look ahead to key elections in
France and the U.K.

On Tuesday, Powell acknowledged progress in disinflation but added that
officials need more confidence before cutting interest rates.

Over 200 candidates have withdrawn from France's runoff election to block the
far right, as Macron and a left wing coalition unite.

Marine Le Pen said that the National Rally would still try to form a government
even if they failed to achieve an overall majority.

In the U.K., the Labour Party is set to grab 484 out of the total 650 seats in
the Parliament, a pre-poll company Survation projected.

In economic releases, the Eurozone PMI Services index has been finalized at
52.8, slightly down from May's 53.2.

Eurozone producer prices posted an annual fall of 4.2 percent in May after a 5.7
percent decrease in April.

While the French CAC 40 Index has shot up by 1.3 percent, the German DAX Index
is up by 0.8 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent.

In corporate news, Swedish construction company Skanska has moved to the upside
after securing a contract worth $97 million.

Technology company Johnson Matthey has also rallied after launching a share
buyback program.

French aerospace major Airbus has also jumped after it received a $24 billion
order from Philippines' budget airline operator Cebu Air Inc. for up to 152
A321neo aircraft.

Volkswagen has also risen after U.S. electric vehicle maker Rivian said it had
no plans to produce vehicles with the German automaker.

On the other hand, Belgian postal company Bpost has slumped after its annual
profit guidance missed expectations.

Retailer JD Sports has also moved notably lower after Barclays downgraded the
stock to 'underweight' from 'equalweight'.

Topps Tiles has also tumbled after the tile retailer reported a sales drop in
its third quarter.

U.S. Economic Reports

Payroll processor ADP released a report on Wednesday showing private sector
employment in the U.S. increased by slightly less than expected in the month of
June.

ADP said private sector employment climbed by 150,000 jobs in June after rising
by an upwardly revised 157,000 jobs in May.

Economists had expected private sector employment to increase by 160,000 jobs
compared to the addition of 152,000 jobs originally reported for the previous
month.

'Job growth has been solid, but not broad-based,' said ADP chief economist Nela
Richardson. 'Had it not been for a rebound in hiring in leisure and hospitality,
June would have been a downbeat month.'

With the more closely watched monthly jobs report looming, the Labor Department
released a report on Wednesday showing a modest increase by first-time claims
for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended June 29th.

The report said initial jobless claims rose to 238,000, an increase of 4,000
from the previous week's revised level of 234,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to inch up to 235,000 from the 233,000
originally reported for the previous week.

The Labor Department said the less volatile four-week moving average also crept
up to 238,500, an increase of 2,250 from the previous week's revised average of
236,250.

A separate report released by the Commerce Department on Wednesday showed the
U.S. trade deficit widened less than expected in the month of May.

The Commerce Department said the trade deficit rose to $75.1 billion in May from
a revised $74.5 billion in April.

Economists had expected the trade deficit to increase to $76.2 billion from the
$74.6 billion originally reported for the previous month.

The wider trade deficit came as the value of imports fell by 0.3 percent to
$336.7 billion, while the value of exports slid by 0.7 percent to $261.7
billion.

At 10 am ET, the Institute for Supply Management is scheduled to release its
report on service sector activity in the month of June.

The ISM's services PMI is expected to slip to 52.5 in June from 53.8 in May, but
a reading above 50 would still indicate growth.

The Commerce Department is also due to release its report on factory orders in
the month of May at 10 am ET. Factory orders are expected to rise by 0.2 percent
in May after climbing by 0.7 percent 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 28th.

Crude oil inventories are expected to edge down by 0.2 million barrels after
jumping by 3.6 million barrels in the previous week.

The Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the details of this month's
auction of three-year and ten-year notes and thirty-year bonds at 11 am ET.

At 2 pm ET, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release the minutes of its
latest monetary policy meeting, when the central bank once again left interest
rates unchanged.



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