(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures were range-bound on Wednesday as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of a pivotal inflation reading due later in the day that could influence the Federal Reserve’s policy decision this month.
A November reading of the consumer price index (CPI), due at 8:30 a.m. ET, is among the final major datasets ahead of the Fed’s Dec. 17-18 meeting.
The report is expected to show that headline inflation rose 0.3% on a monthly basis and to 2.7% on an annual basis in the last month, still above the Fed’s 2% target.
The core figure, which excludes volatile components such as food and energy, is expected to remain unchanged at 3.3% year-on-year.
The inflation rate has been rising again gradually since October and “an end to this short-term upward trend would be necessary to confirm the expectation of three interest rate cuts in the next six months,” Jochen Stanzl, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, wrote in a morning note.
“The Fed wants to see further progress and does not yet consider the fight against inflation to be over. As long as the labor market does not cool down faster, it has time to continue monitoring the situation.”
Trader bets currently price in an over 86% chance of the central bank delivering a 25 basis point cut next week, according to CME’s FedWatch Tool. Bets had jumped following Friday’s employment report, which showed an uptick in unemployment alongside a surge in job growth.
Investors will be also looking for any hints of a slower pace of rate cuts next year, after numerous Fed officials last week urged caution on the monetary policy easing cycle against the backdrop of a resilient economy.
At 5:27 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were down 75 points, or 0.17%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 3.5 points, or 0.06%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 33.5 points, or 0.16%.
Wall Street’s main indexes ended the previous session lower, weighed down by heavyweight technology stocks, yet the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were near record high levels.
Technology companies have led most of the market’s rally this year, benefiting from the euphoria around artificial intelligence and the prospects of lower interest rates.
U.S. equities have had a broadly positive start to December, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq clocking gains in their first week, after ending November on a high note.
Also on the docket this week is a producer prices reading due on Thursday.
Among premarket movers, GameStop gained 3% after the videogame retailer reported a profit for the third quarter after ramping up cost-saving efforts.
General Motors was up 1.2% after the automaker said on Tuesday that it will end robotaxi development at its majority-owned, money-losing Cruise business.
GE Vernova slipped 4.9% as the company’s chief executive officer said he was cautious about the outlook for its wind sector even though it had resumed installing turbines at two offshore wind farms.
(Reporting by Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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