U.S. stock futures were little changed Tuesday night following a winning day for the major averages, as investors awaited the latest Federal Reserve policy decision.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were flat. S&P 500 futures dipped 0.03%, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.03%.
Wall Street is coming off a positive session for the major benchmarks. The 30-stock Dow advanced 320 points, or 0.8%, notching its best day since Feb. 22. The S&P 500 rose roughly 0.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite added about 0.4%.
Recent weakness in tech stocks has had some investors deliberating whether the artificial intelligence rally is slowing, as other parts of the market gain traction. On Tuesday, communication services — which includes the likes of Alphabet and Meta Platforms — was the only losing sector in the S&P 500, as energy and utilities stocks led the broader index.
Semiconductor stocks also underperformed, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH) slipping 0.2%. Shares of bitcoin proxy MicroStrategy and Super Micro Computer were notable decliners.
“All else equal, it’s not a bad thing to see this rotation and churn happening under the surface,” Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab, said on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.” “I think it is sending a message about economic resilience, and that’s why there’s more of a cyclical bias to what has been working.”
The Fed is broadly anticipated to keep interest rates unchanged at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday. However, investors will scan the dot plot for insight into the number and timing of rate cuts, with many anticipating the central bank will start lowering rates in June.
Some are concerned a recent spate of hot inflation reports could result in even fewer cuts than markets are anticipating. “The dot plot could show that we’ve taken yet another cut out of what have been three,” Sonders said. “The question, though, is at what point does it hit the market, given we’ve had this market resilience. I think ultimately, it’s not just about the Fed reaction function, but the sustainability of the economic growth profile.”
On the corporate earnings front, Micron Technology and General Mills will report results Wednesday.
Expect choppy trading ahead, RBC Capital Markets warned
There could be some volatile trading over the next several months, according to RBC Capital Markets.
Technical strategist Robert Sluymer told clients that the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite have “merely traded sideways in a narrow choppy range” over the past two weeks and haven’t shown evidence of a true reversal on their uptrends. Looking ahead, he cautioned of hectic trading movements into the second quarter of the year.
“We expect further volatility into Q2 that likely sees both indexes trade in choppy sideways trading ranges,” Sluymer wrote to clients.
While he said stocks should see further upside this year, he noted that there may be a short-term pause or pullback in the upcoming quarter.
— Alex Harring
