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Futures tracking US equities were mixed on Wednesday, holding losses from the previous session on more pressure from elevated bond yields. Contract for the S&P 500 and Dow were flat, while those for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 lost 0.5%. Tech giants were mostly lower premarket as worries of soaring aggregate credit supply lifted borrowing costs in the longer end of curves. Oracle, AMD, Micron, and Marvell were down. Borrowing costs were also lifted by high energy prices as hawkish rhetoric by both the US and Iran prolonged expectations on the suspension of oil from the Persian Gulf. The outlook on interest rates will be further tested after the release of FOMC minutes today. Meanwhile, TJX, Lowe's, and Target fell between 4% and 1% after the retail giants reported their second-quarter results. Conversely, Analog Materials outperformed other semiconductors on its strong guidance. Moderna stock doubled and Merck surged 10% after a trial on their joint vaccine cut recurrence in melanoma.

US Futures Extend Muted Decrease

Retail sales in South Africa rose by 1.6% year-on-year in June 2026, slowing from a downwardly revised 2.2% increase in May and missing market expectations of a 2.3% growth. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail sales shrank by 0.6%, after a revised flat reading the month before. Retail trade sales increased by 1.7% in the second quarter of 2026 compared with the second quarter of 2025.

South Africa Retail Trade Growth Below Forecasts

The volume of mortgage applications in the US eased by 0.4% on the second week of August, trimming the two-month high rise from the earlier period, according to data compiled by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The muted change was aligned with the constant benchmark mortgage rate of 6.77% in the period, four basis points away from the one-year high in the last week of July, as yields in long-term Treasury bonds held close to a near-two-decade high. Applications to refinance a mortgage, which are sensitive to short-term changes in interest rates, rose by 1.5% from the previous week. In turn, applications for a mortgage to purchase a home, fell by 2%.

US Mortgage Applications Inch Down

US mortgage rates were little changed last week, with the average contract rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with conforming balances holding at 6.77%. The stability in borrowing costs provided little incentive for either prospective buyers or existing homeowners to act, with total mortgage application volume slipping just 0.4% from the previous week. Although mortgage rates were unchanged during the week, they remained near the upper end of their recent range and moved slightly higher at the start of this week, suggesting housing activity may remain constrained in the near term. Refinance applications increased 2%, although demand remained subdued as elevated rates continued to discourage borrowers, particularly those with larger loan balances. Meanwhile, applications to purchase homes declined 2% as affordability pressures weighed on demand. Higher monthly payments and broader economic uncertainty are prompting some buyers to delay purchases.

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