Futures advance as Trump plays down trade worries

[August 07, 2019]  By Medha Singh

(Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were on course to rise at the open on Wednesday, building on a recovery a day earlier, as President Donald Trump sought to play down the impact of a potentially drawn-out trade war on U.S. farmers and businesses.

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., August 6, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

The three main Wall Street indexes jumped more than 1% on Tuesday after China stepped in to steady the yuan, easing fears that currencies would be the next weapon in the trade war between the United States and China.

Despite Tuesday's gains, the benchmark S&P 500 <.SPX> is still about 5% away from the record high it hit last month.

Shares of technology companies, including Apple Inc <AAPL.O> and chipmakers, were higher before the bell. The iPhone maker's shares rose 0.8%, while those of Intel Corp <INTC.O>, Advanced Micro Devices Inc <AMD.O> and Nvidia Corp <NVDA.O> gained more than 1%.

At 6:56 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis <1YMcv1> were up 87 points, or 0.34%. S&P 500 e-minis <EScv1> were up 9.5 points, or 0.33% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis <NQcv1> were up 40.25 points, or 0.54%.

With the second-quarter earnings season winding down, about three quarters of the 413 S&P 500 companies that have reported results so far have topped earnings estimates.

Match Group Inc <MTCH.O> jumped 18% after the online dating services provider forecast third-quarter sales above estimates, as its popular app Tinder attracted more users in the reported quarter.

Walt Disney Co <DIS.N> dropped 3.6% after its quarterly earnings missed analysts' forecast as the company invested heavily in its streaming platform and began folding in assets purchased from Twenty-First Century Fox.

Cambrex Corp <CBM.N> soared 45% after the contract development and manufacturing company said it was being bought by an affiliate of private equity firm Permira Funds for about $2.02 billion.

(Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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