US stock futures flat as Wall St cools amid anxiety over rates, inflation
Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures were muted in evening deals on Monday, after Wall Street indexes were pulled off record peaks by a mix of profit-taking and growing anxiety ahead of key inflation readings this week.
Investors were also largely on edge over the prospect of higher-for-longer interest rates, as a slew of Federal Reserve officials signaled that the central bank was in no hurry to begin loosening policy.
This notion saw all three Wall Street indexes hit with profit-taking over the past two sessions, after stellar results from market darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) drove stocks to record highs.
S&P 500 Futures were flat at 5,080.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures fell slightly to 17,970.0 points by 18:46 ET (23:46 GMT). Dow Jones Futures steadied at 39,116.00 points.
Focus this week was largely on PCE price index data- the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, which is due on Thursday. Any signs of sticky inflation are likely to give the central bank more impetus to keep rates higher for longer- a notion that dented risk appetite in recent sessions.
The S&P 500 fell 0.4% to 5,069.53 points on Monday, while the NASDAQ Composite fell 0.1% to 15,976.25 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2% and ended at 39,069.23 points.
But before the inflation data, markets will also have to contend with a slew of key readings on the U.S. economy this week. Data on core durable goods orders, house prices, and an assortment of state economic activity readings are due in the coming days.
A revised reading on fourth-quarter gross domestic product is also due this week, and is expected to show some cooling in the U.S. economy, although not to the extent that the Fed will be compelled into cutting
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