Last Updated: 4:05 PM EST
Stock indices finished today’s trading session in the red. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX) and the S&P 500 (SPX) fell by 2.24% and 0.88%, respectively, despite today’s cooler-than-expected inflation report. Indeed, Core CPI, which strips out the volatile energy and food prices, came in at 3.3% year-over-year and 0.1% month-over-month. For reference, economists were expecting 3.4% for the former and 0.2% for the latter. In addition, yearly and monthly headline CPI figures were 3% and -0.1%, respectively, compared to estimates of 3.1% and 0.1%.
These results likely strengthen the case for interest rate cuts and could sway the Federal Reserve to do so. In fact, traders are pricing in an 81.3% chance of a September rate cut, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
In other news, the Department of Labor released its Initial Jobless Claims report, which came in better than expected. In the past week, 222,000 people filed for unemployment insurance for the first time. Expectations were for 236,000 individuals.
In addition, Continuing Jobless Claims, which measures the number of unemployed people who qualify for unemployment insurance, came in at 1.852 million. This was below the forecast of 1.86 million and lower than last week’s print of 1.856 million.
First Published: 5:02 AM EST
U.S. futures traded slightly lower on Thursday morning as investors awaited a crucial inflation report to gain insight into the Federal Reserve’s interest rate trajectory. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the S&P 500 (SPX), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) were down by about 0.06%, 0.05%, and 0.06%, respectively, at 4:27 a.m. EST, July 11.
In yesterday’s trading session, both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite closed at a new record high and gained 1.02% and 1.18%, respectively. Further, the Dow Jones was up by 1.09%. The rally was fueled by gains in mega-cap tech stocks, such as Nvidia (NVDA), Apple (AAPL), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Microsoft (MSFT), and Alphabet (GOOGL).
Regarding today’s economic calendar, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for June is due for release at 8:30 a.m. EST. Economists expect the annual inflation rate to have declined for a third straight month to 3.1% in June 2024, the lowest since January, compared to 3.3% in May.
Moving to corporate earnings, Delta Air Lines (DAL), PepsiCo (PEP), and Conagra Brands (CAG) are slated to release results today.
Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year treasury yield is up at the time of writing, floating near 4.29%. At the same time, WTI crude oil futures trended higher, hovering near $82.48 per barrel as of the last check.
Elsewhere, European markets opened higher today as investors looked ahead to the key U.S. inflation data due today.
Asia-Pacific Markets Traded Higher on Thursday
Asia-Pacific indices traded in the green today. A surge in artificial intelligence (AI) chip stocks and rising expectations for interest rate cuts by the U.S. central bank lifted investor sentiment across the region.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was up 2.06%. Similarly, Japan’s Nikkei and Topix indices finished higher by 0.94% and 0.69%, respectively. Further, China’s Shanghai Composite and Shenzhen Component indices ended up by 1.06% and 1.99%, respectively.
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