Stock futures were lower on Wednesday as the US government officially entered a shutdown. Michael Nagle/Bloomberg/Getty Images New York —

Stocks were set to open lower on Wednesday as the US government officially entered a shutdown and Wall Street grappled with the uncertain implications for the economy.

Dow futures were down 219 points, or 0.47%. S&P 500 futures fell 0.5% and Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 0.6%.

The government at midnight officially shut down for the first time in seven years after lawmakers failed to agree on a funding bill.

The gridlock on Capitol Hill is set to put many federal employees out of work indefinitely, in addition to stoking uncertainty about the fate of regularly scheduled releases of key government data.

History shows that the stock market te

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