Dow futures dip about 100 points as the April sell-off in markets continues

Traders on the floor of the NYSE, April 14, 2022.
Source: NYSE

U.S. stock futures fell on Monday as concerns over rising interest rates continue to dent market sentiment. Wall Street is also bracing for a stacked week of earnings, including reports from major tech companies such as Amazon and Apple.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures lost 247 points, or 0.7%. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.8%, and Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.7%.

Those moves come after a sell-off on Friday, which led to the Dow’s worst one-day performance since October 2020. The S&P 500, meanwhile, dropped more than 2% on Friday — its worst day since March.

All the major averages closed down lower last week, with the Dow falling 1.9% for the week, or its fourth straight weekly decline. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq dropped 2.8% and 3.8% for the week respectively, posting their third straight weekly decline.

“There has been severe damage in many areas of the market, while money rotated into perceived ‘defensives’ like Utilities, Staples, Pharma, and even mega-cap growth,” said Jonathan Krinsky, chief market technician at BTIG. “Those areas, despite their strong momentum, are now unwinding lower, while the low-momentum names continue to trend down.”

Wall Street is also bracing for what will be the busiest week yet in corporate earnings season. About 160 companies in the S&P 500 are expected to report earnings this week, and all eyes will be on reports from big tech companies, including Amazon, Apple, Google-parent Alphabet, Meta Platforms and Microsoft.

Coca-Cola is expected to report before the bell on Monday. Other companies reporting on Monday include Activision Blizzard, Otis, Whirlpool and Zions Bancorp.

Investors will be watching Twitter as well, which reportedly is re-examining Elon Musk’s takeover bid after the billionaire investor disclosed he secured $46.5 billion in financing, according to a Wall Street Journal report, citing unnamed sources.

Investors are looking ahead to a packed week of corporate earnings, including reports from Amazon, Apple and Microsoft.