Futures drop over 1% on growth worries; focus turns to Fed

[September 20, 2021]  By Devik Jain

(Reuters) - U.S. stock futures fell more than 1% on Monday, as concerns about the pace of an economic recovery hit energy and banking shares at the start of a week in which the Federal Reserve will decide on potentially tapering its pandemic-era stimulus.

Futures tracking the blue-chip Dow index, which mainly comprises stocks reliant on a steady economic recovery, were down 1.6% at 6:51 a.m. ET at their lowest level since July 20.

Energy shares including Chevron and Exxon Mobil led declines in premarket trading, while industrials Boeing Co and Caterpillar Inc slipped 1.8% and 1.9%, respectively. [O/R]

Wall Street's main indexes have been hurt this month by fears of potentially higher corporate tax rates denting earnings and an uneven labor market recovery. The benchmark S&P 500 is on track to snap a seven-month gaining streak.

All eyes on Wednesday will be on the Fed's policy meeting, where the central bank is expected to lay the groundwork for a tapering, although the consensus is for an actual announcement to be delayed until the November or December meetings. [nL1N2QI1L8]

"In the run-up to Fed meetings, investors are nervous, volatility rises, then the Fed surprises dovishly and volatility declines again," analysts at Berenberg wrote in a note.

"Given that the market has been well prepared for bond purchases to be curtailed and that they are not likely to be immediate, we would expect a similar pattern this time as well."

The CBOE volatility index, known as Wall Street's fear gauge, hit its highest level in two months.

S&P 500 e-minis fell 57.5 points, or 1.3%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis lost 152.75 points, or 1%.

Global markets including commodities have also been on edge recently over deepening troubles at China Evergrande, the world's most indebted property developer. [MKTS/GLOB] [nL1N2QM02L]

Economy-linked banking stocks including Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Bank of America Corp slid between 2.2% and 3%, tracking U.S. Treasury yields. [US/]

A slate of U.S.-listed Chinese stocks including Weibo Corp, Bilibili Inc, Vipshop Holdings Ltd and Pinduoduo Inc shed between 3.4% and 5.4% amid a widening regulatory crackdown in China.

Cruiseliners, slid about 3%, while carriers United Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Airlines dropped 2% as rising COVID-19 cases stoked fears of a delayed recovery in travel demand.

(Reporting by Devik Jain and Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Maju Samuel)

[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.