Dow futures slipped slightly in overnight trading on Tuesday after the 30-stock average hit a 5-day winning streak in the regular session.
Dow futures fell 50 points. S&P 500 futures were down 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.15%.
On Tuesday, key averages fell after a drop in retail sales. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 282 points, dragged down by a 4.3% decline in Home Depot stock. The average had its first negative day in 5.
The S&P 500 also lost 0.7% on its worst day since July 19. The Nasdaq Composite was the relative underperformer, down 0.9% as Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Google parent Alphabet all closed lower.
The Census Bureau said Tuesday that retail sales fell 1.1% in June, largely due to a decline in auto sales. According to the Dow Jones consensus forecast, economists expected retail sales to decline 0.3% in July, compared to a revised 0.7% increase in June.
Excluding cars, sales were down 0.4%, compared to estimates of 0.2%.
The small-cap benchmark Russell 2000 fell 1.2% on Tuesday.
“The stock market is long overdue for a correction, Covid cases continue to mount, obscuring economic reopenings, consumer data has collapsed shockingly recently – including consumer confidence last Friday and retail sales and builder sentiment today – multiple stocks have stopped responding positively to good profits, inflation reports remain hot and talks about the Federal Reserve throttling are everywhere, “said Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist, Leuthold Group.
The winning season continues on Wednesday with Target and Lowe reporting to the bell. Cisco Systems and Nvidia answer after the bell.
The stock trading app Robinhood publishes its first earnings report as a public company on Wednesday after the bell.
The Federal Reserve Open Markets Committee will release minutes of its July meeting on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. Market participants will look for clues about the central bank’s stance on inflation and when it might suspend its asset purchase program.
