U.S. stock futures are under pressure that follows Dow’s record close

February 26, 2021: On Thursday, U.S. stock index futures were slightly down after the Dow Jones Industrial Average shut at a record high.

Contracts of the future are tied to the Dow that bounces increased 20 points. Nasdaq 100 futures shed around 0.8% as tech stocks again came under pressure. S&P 500 futures lost 0.3%. Tesla and Facebook shares fell in premarket trading.

 First-time jobless claimed totalled 730,000 for the week ended February 20, versus a print of 845,000, economists expected polled by Dow Jones. In contrast, durable goods orders rose by 3.4% in January compared to a Dow Jones consensus of a 1.0% growth.

On Thursday morning, the Treasury yield ten years old has hit 1.46%, the highest level from February 2020. The rate of benchmark has increased 35 basis points this month. Even more high rates could spur investors to roll out of stocks and into bonds, and the growth-oriented technology sector can strike them.

Chief market strategist at LPL Financial, Ryan Detrick, said, “Our base case is that rates will continue to increase because of the rising growth and inflation expectations and, eventually, Federal Reserve normalization.”

GameStop, the controversial meme stock, is on the rise again. Shares were up above 50% in premarket trading after doubling in the previous session on a chief executive’s reported ousting.

The Dow jumped 425 points to close at a record high in a volatile session that at one point saw the 30-stock average drop more than 110 points on Wednesday.

“It seems pretty clear to us that the move in rates has been driven by growing optimism about economic growth, and rates are finally ‘catching up’ to the bullish growth outlook inequities,” said David Lefkowitz, head of equities Americas at UBS Global Wealth Management. “So equity investors should not be overly concerned.”