MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks: Futures Under Pressure; ADP Disappoints

By Anora Mahmudova and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

Private sector adds 189,000 jobs in March

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures pointed to more losses on Wall Street Wednesday as investors assessed a weaker-than-expected ADP employment report and waited for manufacturing data and car sales.

Futures have been choppy, as big moves in currency markets appeared to spur a selloff in equities. They then briefly ventured into positive territory after strong European data (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/eurozone-manufacturing-activity-picks-up-in-march-2015-04-01) spurred a rally in those markets, but the upbeat sentiment has since evaporated.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) dropped 60 points, or 0.3%, to 17,642, while those for the S&P 500 index (ESM5) dropped 7.55 points, or 0.4%, to 2,053. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 (NQM5) lost 14.75 points, or 0.3%, to 4,315.

Early selloff: During Asian hours, the benchmarks dramatically weakened as the dollar pitched lower against the yen. "It's not every day you see Nasdaq and S&P futures dropping 1.3% in around 20 minutes, and 0.7% in three minutes, especially when risk FX (such as AUD/USD) or copper didn't go along for the ride," IG chief market strategist Chris Weston said in a note.

He said there was a lot of "head-scratching" going on over just what triggered the drop in stock futures. It coincided with a fall for the U.S. dollar against the yen (USDJPY). A lackluster reading (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/japans-tankan-sentiment-survey-shows-few-gains-2015-03-31) from the Bank of Japan's tankan corporate-sentiment survey prompted investors to buy the yen, a perceived haven. The dollar traded at Yen120.07, compared with Yen120.14 late Tuesday in New York.

Appetite for riskier investments was already weak in Asia after sizable losses Tuesday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-fed-speakers-iran-keep-investors-on-edge-as-quarter-ends-2015-03-31) for Wall Street. The S&P 500 (SPX) finished down 18.35 points, or 0.9%, at 2,067.89, though it still recorded a quarterly gain of 0.4%, its ninth straight winning quarter.

Data: Private-sector employment gains continued in March but at a slower pace than in the prior month. Employers added 189,000 jobs last month, Automatic Data Processing Inc. reported Wednesday. ADP revised February's gain slightly to 214,000 from a prior estimate of 212,000.

The Markit purchasing managers index is due at 9:45 a.m. Eastern.

At 10 a.m. Eastern, the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index for March will be released. It is expected to have slipped to 52.5% from 52.9% in February (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ism-manufacturing-slows-in-february-for-fourth-month-2015-03-02).

Construction spending for February comes out at the same time.

Fed speakers: San Francisco Fed President John Williams moderates a panel on financial stability at the Atlanta Fed policy conference at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. Also on the docket today, Atlanta Fed chief Dennis Lockhart appears on a monetary policy panel at an Atlanta Fed conference at 11 a.m. Eastern.

Both are voters of the Federal Open Market Committee.

Stocks to watch: Shares of Hewlett-Packard Co.(HPQ) climbed 1.2% premarket after Jefferies lifted its view on the computer maker to buy. Jeffries sees "significant longer-term value" not reflected in the current valuation.

Twitter Inc.(TWTR) picked up 1.4% ahead of the bell. Jefferies initiated coverage with a buy recommendation and a $65 price target.

Shares of Staples Inc.(SPLS) added 1.8% after KeyBanc Capital lifted the office-supply company to overweight from sector weight.

Monsanto Co.(MON) shares drifted lower after profit and revenue fell below expectations.

Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. (SRPT) shares rallied 8.8% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the biotech firm appointed Edward Kaye as interim CEO with immediate effect and said it is pushing ahead with regulatory and clinical work needed to gain approval for its lead product candidate.

Other markets: Oil (CLK5) remained under pressure (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) as talks on Iran's nuclear program resumed in Switzerland after the deadline was extended.

Metals were mixed, while the dollar struggled for direction against (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid)other major currencies.

Asian stock markets closed mixed, with China's benchmark Shanghai Composite Index ending above 3,800 for the first time since 2008 (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid).

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