The broad market exchange-traded fund SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) was down 1.1% and the actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) was 1.4% lower in Thursday's premarket activity as lingering tariff uncertainties dampened investor sentiment.

US stock futures were also lower, with S&P 500 Index futures down 1.1%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipping 0.9%, and Nasdaq futures retreating 1.4% before the start of regular trading.

US layoff plans increased to 172,017 jobs in February, the highest monthly total since July 2020, driven by government sector cuts, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said Thursday.

The weekly jobless claims report, the January international trade in goods and services report and the Q4 productivity and costs bulletin will be released at 8:30 am ET.

The wholesale inventories report for January posts at 10 am ET, followed by the weekly EIA natural gas report at 10:30 am ET.

Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Patrick Harker speaks at 8:45 am ET, Fed Governor Christopher Waller 3:30 pm ET and Atlanta President Raphael Bostic at 7 pm ET.

In premarket activity, bitcoin was up by 0.6% and the cryptocurrency fund ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO) was 0.4% higher.

Power Play:

Technology

Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) retreated 1.4%, and the iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) was 1.5% lower, while the iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was inactive. Among semiconductor ETFs, SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) fell 1.8%, while the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) declined by 3%.

Allegro MicroSystems (ALGM) shares were up more than 8% in recent Thursday premarket activity after the company said it received an unsolicited acquisition offer from ON Semiconductor (ON) but determined that "the proposal was inadequate." ON Semiconductor stock was down 4.8%.

Winners and Losers:

Industrial

Industrial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLI) retreated 1.1% while the Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) and the iShares US Industrials ETF (IYJ) were inactive.

GMS (GMS) stock was down more than 6% before the opening bell after the company reported lower fiscal Q3 adjusted earnings and flat net sales.

Consumer

The Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) was down 0.4%, while the Vanguard Consumer Staples Fund (VDC) slipped 0.1%. The iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (IYK) advanced 0.01%, and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) lost 1.1%. The VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) was inactive, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF (XRT) was 0.1% higher.

JD.com (JD) shares were up more than 6% pre-bell after the company posted higher Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue.

Energy

The iShares US Energy ETF (IYE) was up 0.6%, while the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) was 0.3% lower.

Venture Global (VG) stock was down more than 5% before Thursday's opening bell after the company's Q4 earnings and revenue trailed FactSet analysts' expectations.

Health Care

The Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) retreated 0.6%. The Vanguard Health Care Index Fund (VHT) was inactive while the iShares US Healthcare ETF (IYH) advanced 1.6%. The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was inactive.

BrightSpring Health Services (BTSG) stock was up more than 5% premarket after the company reported higher Q4 adjusted earnings and revenue in addition to lifting its fiscal 2025 sales guidance.

Financial

Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) was down 1%, Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) fell 2.6%, while its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was 3% higher.

Bread Financial Holdings (BFH) shares were down 1.4% pre-bell Thursday after the company said late Wednesday it priced a $400 million offering of 8.375% fixed-rate reset subordinated notes due 2035 at 100% of the principal amount.

Commodities

Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil advanced 0.8% to $66.84 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas fell 0.7% to $4.42 per 1 million British Thermal Units. United States Oil Fund (USO) gained 0.4%, while the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) declined 0.1%.

Gold futures for April retreated 0.6% to $2,908.70 an ounce on the Comex, while silver futures declined 0.5% to $32.97 an ounce. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) were down 0.8%, and the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was 1.2% lower.