Stock Futures Fall as Investors Focus on Fed

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are down 163 points ahead of the open this morning, while Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) and S&P 500 (SPX) futures indicate a lower open as well, the former also off by triple digits. Rising bond yields are continuing to weigh on the market after yesterday's hawkish Fed comments.

More light will be shed later today, too, with the release of the Fed's Beige Book report, as well as commentary from New York Federal Reserve Bank President and CEO John Williams. Meanwhile, retail sales rose 0.6% in December, past the 0.4% polled by economists. 

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• So far, stocks are handling the sentiment shift, per Schaeffer's Senior V.P. of Research Todd Salamone. 
• Software stock to buy on the dip. 
• Plus, SAVE stumbles on canceled merger; and two analyst updates to monitor. 

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.4 million call contracts and over 1.1 million put contracts traded on Tuesday. The single-session equity put/call ratio climbed to 0.84, and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.71. 
2. Spirit Airlines Inc (NYSE:SAVE) stock is plummeting before the bell, down 19.3% at last look, and looking to extend yesterday's 47.1% drawdown, after a federal judge blocked the company's merger with JetBlue Airways (JBLU). Should these losses hold, SAVE is looking at fresh record lows. 
3. Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F) stock is off 2.3% premarket, after a downgrade from UBS to "neutral" from "buy." Since last January, the auto stock is down 5.3%, and already at a 6% deficit since the start of 2024. 
4. Instacart parent Maplebear Inc (NASDAQ:CART) is up 3.9% in electronic trading, after Wolfe Research upgraded the shares to "outperform" from "peer perform," citing plenty of potential options for the company, including merging with Uber (UBER). Newly traded since September, CART is up just 1.7% since the start of the month. 
5. Plenty of economic data is scheduled for the shortened week. 

China's GDP Misses Expectations

Stocks in Asia were lower Wednesday, after China’s fourth-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 5.2%. In response, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 2.1%, to close near a five-year low, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng erased 3.7% to settle at its lowest level since November 2022. South Korea’s Kospi shed 2.5% and Japan’s Nikkei shed a more modest 0.4%, after business sentiment at manufacturers in the area slid in January for the first time in four months.

European markets are sharply lower as well this afternoon, as traders remained tuned into the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In addition, U.K. inflation surprised investors by rising to 4% year over year in December after alcohol and tobacco prices rose. At last glance, London’s FTSE 100 is 1.8% lower, while France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX are down 1.2% and 1%, respectively.