After Tuesday's heavy gains, some banking of profits looks inevitable when the market opens, especially in view of the soft performance of European markets.
There is little in the way of economic data to entice investors to add to yesterday's gains, with the result that the S&P 500 is expected to relinquish around five points of yesterday's 26 point gain, while the Dow Jones average is tipped to give up 65 points or so of yesterday's 222 point rise.
Plans to put stationery sellers Staples Inc. (NASDAQ:SPLS) and Office Depot Inc (NASDAQ:ODP) in the same filing cabinet have been dumped in the bin.
Office Depot lost a third of its value in pre-market trade while Staples lost 15% after a judge blocked the proposed merger.
Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) specializes in happy endings but the film studio and theme parks owner had better have a plot twist up its sleeve after fiscal second quarter results failed to wow the stock market.
Shares were off 5% ahead of the official start of trading after the company revealed below-par earnings after the bell yesterday, despite the success of films such as "Zootopia" in the first three months of 2016, plus the continued popularity of Christmas blockbuster “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”.
In contrast, computer games maker Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ:EA) beat the Street with its earnings numbers, prompting an 8.5% rise in the shares ahead of the official start of trading.