Day trading pre-market open April 3

Morning traders. Thanks loungers, especially @Ravgnome.


Outlook for the day: Negative as solid falls on Wall Street offset commodity price gains.

ASX futures: down 30 points or 0.38%


Overnight themes:

• US stocks retreat and treasury yields rise as traders lower expectations for a June rate cut. The Dow and S&P 500 drop for a second night. The Nasdaq also falls.
• Treasury yields rise as the market succumbs to a recent run of strong economic data, stubbornly-high inflation readings and warnings from Federal Reserve officials that the bank is in no rush to cut rates. A report on Friday showed inflation remains well above the Fed's target rate at an annual rate of 2.8%. Manufacturing data on Monday implied the economy may be heating up again, risking an upsurge in inflation. Energy prices are also on the advance (more below).
• Overnight data show factory orders rebounded more than expected in February, while job openings were little changed in a sign demand for labour remains well supported. The yield on 10-year treasuries logs its highest return since late November.
• The odds on a June rate cut have drifted out to 57% from 64% last week, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.
• "The narrative of 'higher [rates] for longer' is coming back into play despite the fact that the Fed does see a rate cut sometime this year. So this has got the market worried" - Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial (per Reuters).
• Wall Street's "fear gauge", the VIX or volatility index, records its strongest reading in more than two weeks.
• A 4.9% slump in Tesla drags on the Nasdaq and S&P 500 after the electric car-maker reports its first decline in quarterly deliveries in almost four years.
• Eight of eleven sectors decline. The night's worst performers are healthcare -1.62%, consumer discretionary -1.28% and real estate -1.12%. Three sectors buck the downtrend: energy +1.37%, utilities +0.17% and communication services +0.09%.
• Escalating tensions in the Middle East boost oil and gold. Brent crude touches its highest since late October after an Israeli strike on Iran's embassy in Syria sharpens fears of a wider conflict. Gold logs a third-straight record as traders buy traditional havens in times of geopolitical strife.
• Iron ore rises for the first time in six sessions as buyers stock up ahead of public holidays in China later this week. The most-traded ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange bounces 3.1%. Chinese markets close on Thursday and Friday.
• Copper regains US$9,000 a ton following the first expansion in Chinese manufacturing in six months. Other industrial metals also rally. Nickel climbs back above US$17,000 a ton. Weekend data showed the official manufacturing PMI improved to 50.8 last month from 49.1 in February.

Key events today:

• China services PMI - 12.45 pm AEDT
• US private payrolls, services PMI - tonight
• Speech by US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell - tonight

S&P 500: down 38 points or 0.72%

Dow: down 397 points or 1%

Nasdaq: down 156 points or 0.95%

Dollar: up 0.43% to 65.16 US cents

Iron ore (Dalian): up 3.1% to US$106.15

Brent crude: up US$1.50 or 1.7% to US$88.92

Gold: up US$24.70 or 1.1% to US$2,281.80

NYSE Arca Gold Bugs: up 1.16%

Bitcoin: down 5.23% to US$66,073

Copper (LME): up 1.62% to US$9,011

Nickel (LME): up 2.28% to US$17,025

Uranium (spot price): up 1.14% to US$89.50

Lithium carbonate (China spot): up 0.84% to US$15,284

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF: down 0.48%

BHP: up 1.41% (US); up 2.33% (UK)

Rio Tinto: up 1.42% (US); up 1.99% (UK)