Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average turned negative Wednesday after the blue chip index dropped nearly 300 points on Tuesday, the latest in a string of negative trading sessions this September.
Futures for the 30-stock index lost 10 points to 34,454.
Futures for the S&P 500 inched up 3.75 points, or 0.1%, to 4,438.50.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite Index heightened 25.75 points, or 0.2%, to 15,405.50.
Markets have been in a funk so far this month amid rising investor worries about the delta variant derailing the economic recovery, along with hand-wringing over the next action by the Federal Reserve.
The S&P 500 closed Tuesday at the lowest since Aug. 20. Tuesday marked the fifth straight day of losses for the NASDAQ. The Dow and S&P 500 indexes have been in the red for six of the last seven days.
September has historically been a down month for the markets, which have seen an average decline of 0.56% in the month since 1945, according to CFRA. And after eight months of straight gains, strategists say a major pullback could be imminent.
For September, the Dow is off by more than 2% and the S&P 500 is off 1.8%. The S&P 500 is on track to see its worth monthly performance since October 2020.
Microsoft shares gained more than 1% in pre-market trading after announcing a dividend increase and a sizable $60 billion share repurchase program.
Energy stocks, which have been popular bets among investors banking on a big economic recovery, gained in pre-market trading as WTI crude topped $71. Exxon added about 1%.
Apple shares rebounded slightly in premarket trading after the shares fell Tuesday after the unveiling of a new iPhone and other products.
Casino stocks like Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts traded in the red again in the premarket. Those names took a big hit Tuesday as the government of Macau looks to increase regulatory scrutiny over casinos and Chinese health authorities reported a Covid-19 outbreak.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 index hesitated 0.5% Wednesday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index faltered 1.8%.
Oil prices gained 95 cents to $71.41 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dipped $3.50 to $1,803.60 U.S. a pound.