Wall Street set to open higher on tech rebound, positive data

By Amy Caren Daniel

(Reuters) - Wall Street was set to open higher on Tuesday as technology stocks looked to rebound after a widespread sell-off in the prior session and as economic data showed U.S. consumer spending rose solidly in June.

The technology sector, which had led the equity market to record highs, has lost more than 5 percent in the past three days after lackluster earnings from Netflix, Facebook and Twitter raised concerns about the future growth of high-flying companies.

Shares of the so-called FAANG group were higher. Facebook, Amazon.com, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet were up between 0.20 and 0.73 percent.

"It's a technical reaction, as technology stocks have sold off quite sharply," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York.

"If you have several days of declines, you have some bargain hunting coming in and that's what is temporarily halting the fall."

Investors are now pinning their hopes on Apple, the last of the FAANGs to report results, which is due after the bell. The stock was up 0.3 percent.

The jitters about the future of technology stocks comes as data continues to show the economy is growing at a healthy clip.

The Commerce Department said U.S. consumer spending increased 0.4 percent last month as households spent more on restaurants and accommodation, building a strong base for the economy heading into the third quarter, while inflation rose moderately.

The Federal Reserve, due to start a two-day meeting later in the day, is expected to leave interest rates unchanged after increasing borrowing costs in June for the second time this year. The Fed has forecast two more rate hikes by December.

At 8:49 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 13 points, or 0.05 percent. S&P 500 e-minis were up 6.5 points, or 0.23 percent and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 19 points, or 0.26 percent.

Archer Daniels jumped 4.6 percent and Arconic shares climbed 2.7 percent after both companies reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit.

Ralph Lauren gained 3 percent after the luxury designer brand reported quarterly profit and revenue that topped analysts' estimates.

Qualcomm's shares were up 2.8 percent after the chipmaker commenced buy back of $10 billion of its shares, while Twitter rose 1.5 percent after brokerage Nomura upgraded the stock.

Chipotle Mexican Grill slipped 2.1 percent after the burrito chain operator shut a restaurant in Ohio following reports of customers getting severely ill.

Pfizer's shares dipped 1.4 percent after the drugmaker lowered its full-year revenue forecast due to the strong dollar.

Procter & Gamble dropped 1.2 percent after the consumer goods company reported lower-than-expected quarterly revenue.

(Reporting by Amy Caren Daniel in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)