Exchange-Traded Funds, Equity Futures Lower Pre-Bell Tuesday Amid Economic Data Releases

09:13 AM EDT, 03/24/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) retreated by 0.2% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 0.2% lower in Tuesday's premarket activity amid economic data releases.

US stock futures were also lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 0.2%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.3%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 0.2% before the start of regular trading.

US nonfarm productivity growth for Q4 was revised down to 1.8%, in line with expectations and below the preliminary 2.8% estimate.

US unit labor costs for Q4 were revised up to a 4.4% increase, above expectations for a 3.6% gain and higher than the preliminary 2.8% reading.

The Philadelphia Fed's non-manufacturing activity index fell to negative 23.9 in March, below expectations of negative 15.7 and compared with negative 17.3 in the prior month.

S&P Global's flash estimates of manufacturing and services conditions for March will be released at 9:45 am ET, followed by the Richmond Fed's manufacturing and services reading for March at 10 am ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 0.8%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.6% higher, Ether ETF (EETH) advanced 0.4%, and Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was flat.

Power Play:

Financial

The State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) retreated by 0.4%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was down 0.7%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 0.5% higher.

Jefferies (JEF) shares were up more than 9% pre-bell after the Financial Times reported that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) is considering acquiring Jefferies. Bloomberg News, citing sources, reported that Sumitomo Mitsui had no "immediate" plans for a takeover. Sumitomo Mitsui stock was 2% lower premarket.

Winners and Losers:

Health Care

The State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) advanced 0.02%, the Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was up 0.1%, while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) was inactive. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was inactive.

Amylyx Pharmaceuticals (AMLX) stock was down more than 7% premarket after dropping 2% at Monday's close. The company said Tuesday it has completed patient enrollment in the phase 3 trial of avexitide in post-bariatric hypoglycemia.

Consumer

The State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) was down 0.1%, the Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Fund ETF Shares (VDC) was up 1.7%, while the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) was inactive. The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) lost 0.2%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was 0.2% higher.

Li Auto (LI) shares were up more than 4% pre-bell after the company said its board has approved the repurchase of up to $1 billion Class A ordinary shares and/or American depositary shares through March 31, 2027.

Industrial

The State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) retreated by 0.2%, while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) was flat and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) was inactive.

Cadeler (CDLR) stock was down more than 3% before the opening bell after closing the prior session with a 1.5% fall. The company reported higher 2025 earnings and revenue on Tuesday.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was 0.3% higher, while the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) was up by 0.4%.

Borr Drilling (BORR) stock was up more than 3% before Tuesday's opening bell after the company said Monday it has agreed to acquire five jack-up rigs from Fontis Finance for $287 million, with closing expected during Q3, pending regulatory approval.

Technology

The State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) retreated 0.3%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 0.1% higher, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was down 0.7%. Among semiconductor ETFs, the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) was inactive, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) declined by 0.4%.

CoreWeave (CRWV) shares were up more than 1% in premarket activity after the company said Cline will integrate its W&B Inference into the Cline ecosystem to help developers build and run autonomous coding systems.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose by 3.3% to $91.03 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas advanced by 1.5% to $2.93 per 1 million British Thermal Units. The United States Oil Fund (USO) was up by 3.3%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.9% higher.

Gold futures for March advanced by 0.04% to $4,441.40 an ounce on the Comex. Silver futures increased 0.7% to $69.85 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) gained by 0.1%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up 0.5%.

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.