Investing.com - U.S. stock markets pointed to a flat open on Wednesday morning, as investors looked ahead to an expected tax reform announcement from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration later in the day.
With no major economic reports slated for release on Wednesday, investors were likely to focus on earnings out before the bell from the likes of Boeing (NYSE:BA), Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) and Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG).
The blue-chip Dow futures tacked on 33 points by 6:40AM ET (10:40GMT), the S&P 500 futures added 1 point, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures rose 3 points.
The Nasdaq Composite hit a record high on Tuesday, while the Dow and S&P 500 brushed against recent peaks as strong earnings underscored the health of corporate America.
Investors held off from building on the prior day’s rally as they waited for an announcement on the Trump administration’s tax reform plan.
Trump is expected to propose cutting the income tax rate paid by public corporations to 15% from 35%, and allowing multinationals to bring in overseas profits at a tax rate of 10% versus 35% now.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and National Economic Director Gary Cohn are set to conduct a joint news conference at around 1:30PM ET (17:30GMT) on Wednesday from the White House Briefing Room to announce the tax plan.
Meanwhile, the threat of a U.S. government shutdown this weekend appeared to recede after Trump backed away from a demand that Congress include funding for his planned border wall with Mexico in a spending bill.
Also on markets’ radar, Trump invited all 100 members of the Senate to attend the session with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff later on Wednesday with hopes to forge a strategy to deal with North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles.
The same four officials will then go to Capitol Hill to brief the entire House at 5:00PM ET (21:00GMT), a senior House aide said.
Among active pre-market movers, Pepsico (NYSE:PEP) shares inch higher ahead of the opening bell after its first-quarter earnings report topped Wall Street expectations, helped by higher demand for its healthier drinks and snacks.
United Technologies (NYSE:UTX) rose around 1% after reporting upbeat quarterly earnings results early Wednesday.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) saw shares climb around 3% after it announced better than expected first quarter earnings late Tuesday. The food chain also revealed it experienced a data breach.
Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN) shares rose 4% after the casino operator reported an earnings and revenue beat.
On the downside, United States Steel (NYSE:X) shares tanked nearly 17% following a reported loss and revenue miss for its first-quarter.
In other markets, European stocks hovered around the flatline as the "Macron rally" seen earlier this week faded and investors shifted their focus to a tax announcement in the U.S.
Earlier, in Asia, markets ended mostly in positive territory, with the Shanghai Composite in China closing up around 0.2%, while Japan's Nikkei rose around 1.1%.
Elsewhere, U.S. oil inched lower on Wednesday as investors looked ahead to the Energy Department's weekly supply report at 10:30AM ET.