Nasdaq futures drop over 1% as weak tech earnings fan slowdown fears
Futures tied to the tech-heavy Nasdaq index fell more than 1% on Wednesday as disappointing results and warnings from Microsoft and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) sparked losses among mega cap companies and raised fears of slowing economic growth.
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) posted its lowest sales growth in five years and forecast second-quarter revenue below Wall Street estimates, while Alphabet reported downbeat ad sales and warned of a slowdown in advertising spending.
Shares of both companies fell around 6% each in premarket trading and weighed on Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), which are scheduled to report results later this week. They were down 3.7% and 0.9%, respectively.
“The results of the big technology firms were seen as a key determining factor in market sentiment going into the U.S. third quarter reporting season and both Microsoft and Alphabet have given investors reason to worry,” said Laith Khalaf, head of investment analysis at AJ Bell.
Shares of Meta Platforms fell 3.9% and Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) 4.1% as they rely on ad revenue. U.S.-listed shares of Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) Technology dropped 5.7%, as margins came under pressure from a slowdown in ad growth.
The extensive weakness in the tech sector comes despite a drop in the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield, which fell for the second straight day on rising bets over a slowdown in the pace of interest-rate hikes.
Expectations of a less-hawkish Federal Reserve have helped Wall Street’s main indexes notch three straight sessions of gains, but downbeat earnings and forecasts suggested that the Fed’s rapid interest rate hikes are slowing the economy.
NASDAQ 100 Technical Analysis: Daily Chart
In the daily charts, NASDAQ 100 is trading in an up channel. NASDAQ 100 is currently trading above 20 days SMA & below 50 and 100 days SMA.
RSI is in buying zone which indicates bullishness. MACD is currently above zero which indicates bullishness.
Its immediate support is 11358.31 & the resistance level is at 11719.18.
NASDAQ 100 INDEX will trade in an up channel until there is trend reversal.
How to Trade NASDAQ 100 INDEX this Week:
NASDAQ 100 INDEX will follow the uptrend until there is trend reversal. So, remain bullish on NASDAQ 100 INDEX.
