Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on December 17, 2024.
New York Stock Exchange
U.S. stock futures edged higher late Thursday as traders anticipated the latest reading from the Federal Reserve’s favorite inflation gauge.
futures The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 39 points, or about 0.1%. S&P 500 Index Futures and Nasdaq 100 Index Futures also rose 0.1% each.
In an extension transaction, fedex and Nike Both posted gains after their latest quarterly results. The delivery giant gained about 8%, while the sportswear retailer gained more than 7%.
During Thursday’s trading session, Dow Chemical It was the only major index of the three to close in positive territory, eking out a gain of 15 points and ending a 10-day losing streak – the longest since 1974. rose for the first time since.
Dow Jones rose slightly on Thursday, narrowing losses S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Index – as 10-Year Treasury Bond Yield A second straight day of gains weighed on stocks.
Investors are now looking forward to November data on the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge. The report is scheduled for release on Friday and could become even more important after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. expressed this week The PCE is likely to show that 12-month inflation will be above the central bank’s 2% target.
Analysts polled by Dow Jones expected the index to rise 0.2% this month and 2.5% on the year. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy, is also expected to rise 0.2% monthly and 2.9% annually.
“Whatever the reaction is, it’s likely to be more serious than it was before the Fed actually raised these expectations,” Mike Dickson, head of research and quantitative strategy at Horizon Investments, told CNBC.
The move comes after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point earlier this week and said there may be only two rate cuts in 2025, fewer than previously expected. That sent markets into chaos on Wednesday, with all three major stock indexes falling.
The latest round of turmoil also has major stock indexes expected to fall sharply on a weekly basis. The S&P 500 and Dow Jones are down more than 3% so far this week, while the Nasdaq is down more than 2% over the same period.
Other economic reports are also due Friday, including the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index.
–CNBC’s Sarah Min contributed to this report.
