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Megacap growth names such as Microsoft, Amazon.com and Tesla
advanced between 0.3% and 1.1% in premarket trading.
The benchmark S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed lower in the
previous session, bogged down by climbing Treasury yields.
Government bond yields eased slightly, with the 10-year note
last at 4.6407%.
Fed Board Governor Michelle Bowman and Cleveland Fed President
Loretta Mester are scheduled to speak later in the day.
Top U.S. central bank officials including Fed Chair Jerome
Powell refrained from providing any guidance on when interest
rates may be cut. On Tuesday, they said monetary policy needed
to be restrictive for longer, dashing investors' hopes for
meaningful reductions in borrowing costs this year.
"While stopping short of mentioning rate hikes, Chairman Powell
on Tuesday highlighted that 'the recent data have not given
greater confidence in inflation', Achilleas Georgolopoulos,
investment analyst at forex broker XM said in a note.
"With Vice Chairman Jefferson indirectly stating that rate cuts
could be a long way off, Bowman and Mester could also appear
hawkish today and potentially inflict further damage to market
sentiment amidst a very light US data calendar."
Money market participants see an over 43% chance the Fed could
begin its easing cycle in July, as per the CME FedWatch tool.
On the earnings front, insurer Travelers Cos, medical device
maker Abbott Laboratories and lender U.S. Bancorp are some of
the companies slated to report quarterly results before the
opening bell.
At 5:46 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 139 points, or 0.37%, S&P
500 e-minis were up 15 points, or 0.29%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis
were up 18.25 points, or 0.10%.
Among headlining stocks, United Airlines gained 5.2% after
forecasting stronger-than-expected earnings in the current
quarter.
Other airline stocks such as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines
and Southwest Airlines added around 1% each.
JB Hunt Transport Services dipped 4.9% after the trucking firm
missed Wall Street estimates for first-quarter results.
Apparel retailer Urban Outfitters fell 3.5% after Jefferies
downgraded its rating to "underperform" from "hold".
(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja
Desai)
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