Dow futures tank 500 pts ahead of Fed meet as US stock indices, FAANGM turn negative month-to-date – The Financial Express

Along with Dow futures, NASDAQ and S&P 500 futures were also down with losses.
(Image: REUTERS)

Dow Jones futures were trading 500 points lower on Monday hinting at a turbulent start for US stock markets later today. US stock futures tanked after Dow Jones Industrial, S&P 500, and the NASDAQ ended deep in red on Friday, marking the third consecutive week of losses and turning negative month-to-date. Along with Dow futures, NASDAQ and S&P 500 futures were also down with losses ahead of US Federal Reserve’s September meeting scheduled to end on Wednesday this week. Investors will be keenly watching US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s address later in the week.

Indices turn negative for the month

Dow Jones started the month of September at 35,360, just shy of its all-time high of 35,631 achieved on August 16 this year. However, on Friday’s closing the index was at 34,584, down 2.06% since September 1 and 2.9% from the all-time high.

S&P 500 was at 4,524 on September 1 and reached an all-time high of 4,545 on the very next day. On closing bell last week, the index has dropped 2.01% from the start of the month and 2.48% from the all-time high to settle at 4,432.

The technology-heavy NASDAQ index was at 15,309 at the start of the month, before reaching an all-time high of 15,403 on September 7. Eventually, the index moved lower by the end of last week to close at 15,043 points. NASDAQ Composite has slipped 1.73% from the start of the month and 2.33% from its all-time highs.

FAANGM stocks bleed

Along with the major US stock indices, big technology company stocks have also come under pressure. All FAANGM stocks, except one, have plummeted. Facebook’s share price has taken a beating falling 4.5% from its September 1 levels to end the previous session at $364.72 per share. Further, Apple share price has also dropped 4.23% so far this month to now trade at $146 per share.

Jeff Bezos’ Amazon has fared better than its counterparts so far this month, down just 0.47%. Amazon’s share price has risen strongly since the end of last month. Netflix is the only FAANGM stock to have given positive results so far this month. Netflix share price has soared 1.25% so far in September, now trading at $589 per share.

Internet behemoth Google has also not been spared by investors as the stock tanked 3.04%, trading at $2,816 per share. Meanwhile Microsoft, despite the strong up-move during the previous week is still down 0.65% for the month. 

US Federal Reserve meeting awaited

Jerome Powell and other Federal Reserve officials will meet this week and could possibly announce a tapering of its bond purchasing program. Jerome Powell has already said that the tapering could start this year. Investors will be eyeing further comments from the FOMC on the same, which may dictate stock market movement.