Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 4, 2022.
Source: NYSE
Stock futures rose slightly in overnight trading Sunday after the market suffered a down week as 2024’s rally took a breather.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 55 points. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures both inched up 0.1%.
The 30-stock Dow fell 2.3% last week, posting its worst weekly performance March 2023. The S&P 500 declined nearly 1% during the period, its biggest weekly loss since early January. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite dipped 0.8%, suffering its fourth negative week in five.
The market did end last week on a positive note, however, after a stronger-than-expected jobs report Friday. The surprising gain in payrolls gave investors hope that a strong economy could continue to support corporate earnings growth, even if it means higher interest rates for longer.
“Jobs and wages are rising solidly and aggregate payrolls are outpacing inflation, which will keep Americans spending in 2024 and powering the economy forward,” said Bill Adams, chief economist at Comerica Bank.
For further clarity on how successful the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation has been, investors are eagerly waiting for readings for March consumer and producer price indexes later this week.
Economists polled by Dow Jones expect the CPI number, to be released Wednesday morning, to increase 0.3% last month and 3.5% year over year.
“The Fed seems unbothered by robust employment gains … Inflation though is a bigger issue, and it’s imperative that the Mar price data (CPI, PPI, PCE) show the disinflationary process getting back on track,” Adam Crisafulli, founder of Vital Knowledge, said in a note.
Investors are also grappling with rising bond yields and oil prices. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield surged nearly 20 basis points to last week to about 4.4%. U.S. crude oil touched $87 amid geopolitical tensions.
Bank of America says this week’s CPI should be ‘a confidence building report’
Bank of America economists believe Wednesday’s inflation report should show a moderation in price pressures, providing confidence to the Fed for a rate cut in June.
The Wall Street firm expects the core consumer price index to moderate to 0.2% in March after rising 0.4% in February and January. It sees declines in car prices that should lead to a drop in core goods. Meanwhile, the bank expects a bigger-than-usual rise in energy prices, however.
“The moderation in core CPI should reflect a drop in core goods prices and a more modest price increase in core services,” the bank’s economists said in a note. “A report in line with our expectations would provide confidence to the Fed and keep a June cut firmly in play.”
— Yun Li
Elon Musk announces Tesla robotaxi unveil date
Shares of Tesla jumped 3.8% in after-hours trading Friday after CEO Elon Musk said his electric vehicle company is set to unveil robotaxi later this year.
Musk said in a Friday night post on social media platform X that the unveil will take place on Aug. 8.
Musk has spoken about the robotaxi project for years. Tesla still has yet to deliver a robotaxi, autonomous vehicle or technology that can turn its cars into “level 3” automated vehicles.
— Yun Li
