Day trading pre-market open August 2

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome and @Patterns.

Outlook for the day: Negative following pressure on commodity prices and a mixed close on Wall Street.

ASX futures: down 39 points or 0.53%

Overnight themes:

• Two out of Wall Street's three main indices end lower as investors sift through a mixed batch of corporate earnings and economic data.
• A strong trading update from Caterpillar helps the Dow eke out a slim gain. The global economic bellwether stock jumps 8.9% on a profit beat.
• The S&P 500 and Nasdaq retreat from 16-month highs ahead of earnings this week from heavyweights Apple and Amazon, and the July jobs report. Apple dips 0.43%. Amazon sheds 1.49%.
• “This is not a major decline by any standard... It’s not unreasonable to see investors take some profits” - Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers IBKR.
• The US dollar and treasury yields climb after solid jobs data sharpens the risk of another interest rate hike. Job openings decline less than expected, from 9.61 million in May to 9.58 million in June.
• “The pace of the current slowdown may be too gradual for many policymakers at the Federal Reserve, as job openings are only gradually declining" - Nick Bunker, head of economic research at Indeed Hiring Lab.
• The surging US dollar helps drive gold back under US$2,000 an ounce. The Australian dollar slumps 1.5%.
• Industrial metals decline after new housing sales declines by a third in China from the same time last year, underlining persistent weakness in the property sector. Iron ore finishes higher on hopes for more aggressive stimulus measures.
• Industrials and tech are the only S&P sectors to advance. Utilities and consumer stocks are the heaviest drags.

Key events today:

• US private payrolls - tonight

S&P 500: down 12 points or 0.27%

Dow: up 71 points or 0.2%

Nasdaq: down 62 points or 0.43%

Dollar: down 1.5% to 66.15 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): up 0.5% to US$117.24

Brent crude: down 52 US cents or 0.6% to US$84.91

Gold: down US$30.40 or 1.5% to US$1,978.80

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: down 3.26%

Copper (LME): down 2.21% to US$8,636

Nickel (LME): down 0.31% to US$22,235

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: down 2.02%

BHP: down 2.71% (US); down 1.2% (UK)

Rio Tinto: down 1.47% (US); down 1.07% (UK)