Nasdaq, S&P 500 Futures Rise Ahead Of Inflation Data: Analyst Sees Smooth Finish To 2024 If Week's Key Events Align With Expectations

U.S. stock futures traded in the green ahead of the key November consumer price inflation report due before the market opens. A milder reading may kickstart a pre-Fed day rally, as investors hope the central bank will tone down its hawkish stance. Higher interest rates are blamed for the challenges companies are facing, and the Fed’s signal that it is ready to begin cutting rates in the first half of 2024 could boost traders’ risk appetite.

Corporate updates for the day have largely been negative, potentially triggering a sell-off in the respective sectors.

Cues From Monday's Trading:

The resilient market weathered a bout of profit-taking and ended Monday’s session higher. The gains reflected investors’ optimism about positive outcomes for key economic catalysts due later in the week. The major averages opened on a mixed note and moved lacklusterly in the morning session. They decisively rose in the afternoon, closing higher for the day.

The averages rose for a third straight session, with the Dow Industrials ending at nearly a two-year high, and the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite at their highest levels since March 2022 and early February 2022, respectively.

The buying was broad-based, with only communication services stocks coming under selling pressure.

US Index Performance On Monday

Analyst Color:

Analysts see this week as critical for the market. “After we get past CPI and PPI and the Fed without any surprises, we should have smooth sailing into year-end, with the soft landing narrative very well intact,” fund manager Louis Navellier said in a note.

Futures Today

Futures Performance On Tuesday

In premarket trading on Tuesday, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY rose 0.04% to $462.18 and the Invesco QQQ ETF QQQ gained 0.16% to $396.15, according to Benzinga Pro data.

Upcoming Economic Data:

A 2-day Federal Open Market Committee meeting kickstarts on Tuesday.

The Bureau of Labor Analysis is scheduled to release its consumer price inflation report for November at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists expect the monthly and annual inflation rates to come in at 0.0% and 3.1%, respectively. These compare to the October readings of 0.0% and 3.2%, respectively.

The core rate, which excludes food and energy, may have accelerated from 0.2% to 0.3% from the previous month. The annual rate of core consumer price inflation is expected to remain unchanged at 4%.

The Energy Information Administration will release its short-term energy outlook report at noon ET.

The Treasury will auction 30-year bonds at 1 p.m. ET.

See also: Best Futures Trading Software

Stocks In Focus:

• Lucid Group, Inc. LCID fell about 2.4% in premarket trading following the company’s announcement concerning the resignation of its CFO.
• Oracle Corp. ORCL slumped over 8.50% in reaction to its quarterly results.
• Hasbro, Inc. HAS declined more than 5% after the toymaker announced job cuts.
• FuelCell Energy, Inc. FCEL and Johnson Controls International plc JCI are among the key companies due to release their quarterly results before the market opens.

Commodities, Bonds, Other Global Equity Markets:

Crude oil futures fell 0.21% to $71.17 in early European session on Tuesday after the commodity posted a modest gain on Monday.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell 0.044 percentage points to 4.195% on Tuesday.

Among the financial markets, Asian stocks closed mostly higher, encouraged by Wall Street’s strength overnight. The major European markets gained ground, with the EURO STOXX 50, a stock index of eurozone stocks, up modestly in late-morning trading. Germany’s DAX, however, slipped amid the release of mixed economic data on economic sentiment.

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