Stock futures drop slightly ahead of key inflation reading
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, April 28, 2022.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Stock futures plunged in overnight trade on Tuesday ahead of a key inflation reading.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell about 35 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures were down 0.1% and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.1%.
The moves come after the Dow fell for a fourth straight day on Tuesday in a volatile trading session of alternating gains and losses. The S&P 500 rose 0.25% and the Nasdaq Composite gained about 1%.
Mega-cap tech names, which have struggled in recent weeks, led the gains on Tuesday. Microsoft and Apple each rose more than 1%.
Investors await the April Consumer Price Index release on Wednesday morning for the final temperature check on inflation. Rising prices have been a major concern, especially as the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates and shrinking its balance sheet to fight inflation.
“We’re seeing month-over-month signs that inflation is peaking,” BMO Capital Markets chief investment strategist Brian Belski told Tuesday’s “Closing Bell: Overtime.” CNBC. “But are we going to see some sort of surprise number? That could really get things going.”
Economists expect the CPI to rise 0.2% from the previous month and 8.1% year-on-year, according to the Dow Jones consensus estimate. That compares to March’s pace of 8.5% year-over-year.
Investors are also looking to earnings reports from companies such as Toyota Motors, Walt Disney and Beyond Meat.
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