U.S. stock futures were slightly softer on Wednesday amid cautious trading ahead of a raft of jobs data.How are stock-index futures trading
S&P 500 futures
ES00,
-0.24%
dipped 7 points, or 0.2%, to 4122
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures
YM00,
-0.18%
fell 50 points, or 0.2%, to 33527
Nasdaq 100 futures
NQ00,
-0.24%
eased 23 points, or 0.2%, to 13196
On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA,
-0.59%
fell 199 points, or 0.59%, to 33402, the S&P 500
SPX,
-0.58%
declined 24 points, or 0.58%, to 4101, and the Nasdaq Composite
COMP,
-0.52%
dropped 63 points, or 0.52%, to 12126.
What’s driving markets Stocks have stalled for now as investors ponder whether to be pleased that soft economic data of late has trimmed bond yields, or to be wary of the business downturn those trends foretell. China’s closure for a holiday and a soft handover from Europe are adding to the caution. “After a string of gains for risk assets over recent days, the last 24 hours have seen some steam come out of that rally, with investor nerves growing about the state of the economy once again,” said Henry Allen, strategist at Deutsche Bank. The S&P 500 shed 0.6% on Tuesday, falling back from a seven-week high, after data showed job openings in the U.S. …