Market Watch: Dow futures contract lost 87 points or 0.2%, S&P 500 futures slipped by 6 points or 0.1%, and Nasdaq 100 futures edged down by 43 points or 0.3%.
Stock futures lower ahead of Federal Reserve interest rate decision and inflation data, while Elliott Investment Management stakes Southwest Airlines for potential performance improvement.
Fed decision
The Fed is expected to hold borrowing costs at over two-decade highs during its next policy gathering, focusing on its outlook for rates. The first update to the Fed’s dot plot indicates two 25-basis point cuts this year, down from three in March. Fed officials seek evidence of inflation cooling towards their 2% target pace.
US inflation data
Fresh US inflation data is expected to be released this week, with economists forecasting that May’s annualized headline price growth matched the previous month’s pace but slowed monthly. Wall Street is closely monitoring these figures, as there is a 53% chance the Fed will bring rates down to 5.5% in September.
Elliott Investment And Southwest Airlines Deal
Elliott Investment Management has acquired a nearly $2 billion stake in Southwest Airlines, aiming to reverse the carrier’s underperformance. The activist investor is now one of Southwest’s largest shareholders. Southwest’s shares are currently trading down 4% in 2024, below their level in March 2020 due to COVID-19 and increased costs.
Economic Calendar
- 10:00Â AMÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Employment Trends for May
- 1:00Â PMÂ Â U.S. Treasury to sell $58B in 3-year notes.
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Recent data indicating a possible cooling in the U.S. economy have alleviated some persistent inflation concerns, fueling hopes that the Federal Reserve will start to bring interest rates down from more than two-decade highs as soon as September. Along with the Dow, the benchmark and tech-heavytouched record marks last week.
The durability of the strength on Wall Street will likely be tested by a fresh batch of corporate results this week, including quarterly returns from artificial intelligence darling Nvidia (see below). Durable goods and consumer sentiment data will also be in focus as markets hunt for more evidence that growth is moderating enough to give the Fed justification for rolling out rate cuts this year.
Recent data indicating a possible cooling in the U.S. economy have alleviated some persistent inflation concerns, fueling hopes that the Federal Reserve will start to bring interest rates down from more than two-decade highs as soon as September. Along with the Dow,
The durability of the strength on Wall Street will likely be tested by a fresh batch of corporate results this week, including quarterly returns from artificial intelligence darling Nvidia (see below). Durable goods and consumer sentiment data will also be in focus as markets hunt for more evidence that growth is moderating enough to give the Fed justification for rolling out rate cuts this year.
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MFitch Ratings has downgraded China’s credit rating outlook to “Negative” from “Stable” due to concerns over growing public debt and slowing growth in the world’s second-largest economy. The agency affirmed China’s rating at A+, citing increasing risks to China’s public finance outlook. Concerns over slowing economic growth have grown in recent months, with Fitch expecting gross domestic product growth to fall to 4.5% in 2024.
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U.S. inflation data for February is expected to provide insights into the future direction of Federal Reserve monetary policy. The overall consumer price index (CPI) is expected to match the previous month’s pace of 3.1% annually, with the core CPI expected to slow to 3.7% from 3.9% in January. However, the month-on-month gauge is expected to shed light on price gains momentum.
Fed officials have made cooling inflation the main objective of interest rate hikes, which have brought borrowing costs to over two-decade highs. They suggest cuts may be coming later this year, but need more evidence that price growth is sustainablely easing back down to their 2% annualized target. Analysts at ING believe inflation is likely too hot for comfort.
U.S. inflation data for February is expected to provide insights into the future direction of Federal Reserve monetary policy. The overall consumer price index (CPI) is expected to match the previous month’s pace of 3.1% annually, with the core CPI expected to slow to 3.7% from 3.9% in January. However, the month-on-month gauge is expected to shed light on price gains momentum.
Fed officials have made cooling inflation the main objective of interest rate hikes, which have brought borrowing costs to over two-decade highs. They suggest cuts may be coming later this year, but need more evidence that price growth is sustainablely easing back down to their 2% annualized target. Analysts at ING believe inflation is likely too hot for comfort.