Stock futures rebound slightly after Nasdaq falls for fourth straight day: Live updates

A special survey showed that services activity continued to grow in China in December, with foreign demand for the country’s services also rising.

The Caixin China public service business activity index rose to 52.9 in December from 51.5 in November, rising for the 12th straight month. The survey also indicated that the growth rate was the fastest since July.

“The growth momentum in China’s services sector continued to recover at the end of 2023,” the survey report said. “Employment rose slightly as companies exercised caution in hiring. But the slight expansion was enough to accommodate new orders, keeping the backlog unchanged.”

A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion in activity, while a reading below this level indicates contraction.

– Shreyashi Sanyal

Japan Airlines shares fell as much as 2% on Thursday, before rebounding slightly as Japanese markets resumed trading and reacted to the JAL flight collision at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport on January 2.

The accident occurred when Japan Airlines Flight 516 collided with a Japan Coast Guard aircraft, killing five of the six crew members on board the Coast Guard aircraft.

In a regulatory filing Thursday to the Japan Stock Exchange, JAL said the estimated loss from the plane collision was 15 billion yen ($105 million), which would be covered by insurance.

Australian shares continued their decline after hitting a record high earlier this week, and fell to their lowest levels in two weeks on Thursday.

The S&P/ASX 200 index fell 0.53% to trade near 7,495 – its lowest level since December 19 – down from an all-time high of 7,632.70 hit on Tuesday.

Australian markets fell, tracking a gloomy global mood after minutes from the US Federal Reserve’s December meeting showed interest rate cuts likely in 2024, but offered little clarity on when that might happen.

Bets that the Reserve Bank of Australia will no longer raise interest rates have buoyed the country’s stock market – but those hopes have been partly driven by the Fed’s dovish shift.

The Australian dollar rose 0.1% against the US dollar in early trading.

– Shreyashi Sanyal

ADP’s December payroll report, scheduled for release Thursday morning, is expected to show that companies added 130,000 workers last month, according to economists polled by Dow Jones. That would be an increase from 103,000 the previous month.

The report is scheduled to be released at 8:15 a.m. ET.

– Sarah Maine

Initial jobless claims, or the number of workers applying for unemployment benefits for the first time, are expected to rise to 219,000 for the week ending December 30, according to Dow Jones estimates. That would be slightly higher than the previous week, when initial claims totaled 218,000.

The report is scheduled to be released at 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday.

– Sarah Maine

These companies are making the biggest moves in extended trading:

• Cal-Maine Foods – Cal-Maine Foods shares fell 6.1%. The fresh egg producer reported second-quarter earnings of 35 cents per share, down sharply compared to earnings of $4.07 per share for the same period a year ago. Revenue was $523.2 million, down from $801.7 million the previous year. Cal-Maine Foods said it expects a recent HPAI outbreak within its Kansas facility to hurt overall egg supplies until the chicken flock is replenished.
• Resource Connection – Shares of the management consulting company rose 4.8%. Resources Connection reported second-quarter revenue of $163.1 million, exceeding the $161.9 million expected by analysts surveyed by FactSet. On the other hand, the company’s earnings of 14 cents per share were below the consensus EPS estimate of 17 cents.
• MongoDB — MongoDB shares fell about 2%. UBS downgraded the stock to neutral from buy, and lowered its price target, saying the stock will not continue on the same path as it was last year, according to FactSet. In 2023, MongoDB shares more than doubled.

– Sarah Maine