Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on February 29, 2024 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images
U.S. stock futures were little changed Monday night after a positive start to the week, as investors brace for megacap earnings, the latest Federal Reserve interest rate decision, and a jobs report. Stocks are also on pace to snap a six-month winning streak.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell by 18 points, or 0.05%. S&P 500 futures slid 0.05%, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.03%.
Wall Street is coming off a positive session. Tesla shares jumped after the electric vehicle maker passed a key milestone in rolling out advanced driver-assistance technology in China, bolstering equities. Apple also rose following a bullish upgrade of the stock. The S&P 500 added 0.32%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.35%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 146.43 points, or 0.38%.
Even so, stocks are headed for their first losing month since October as rate cut expectations dropped significantly from where they were at the start of the year. The 30-stock index is on pace for a more than 3% loss in April. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are headed for declines of more than 2%, each.
Markets are pricing in just one quarter percentage point cut in 2024, down from the six or seven anticipated coming into the new year, as persistent inflation and a resilient economy raised the likelihood the Fed would stay higher for longer.
“When you look at the size and the scope and the scale of the rally off the October lows, and then you layer on top of it, the stickiness of inflation in the end, … I wouldn’t be surprised to see some dampener on the market for a little period of time,” Dan Greenhaus, chief strategist at Solus Alternative Asset Management, told CNBC’s “Closing Bell.”
The week ahead is a busy one with Fed policymakers convening for their two-day policy meeting on Tuesday. The central bank is broadly anticipated to keep interest rates steady, but traders worry Fed Chief Jerome Powell’s post-meeting comments will lean more hawkish after the recent spate of hotter inflation reports.
The busiest week of corporate earnings is set to continue with Amazon and Apple reporting their quarterly results Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. Additionally, on Tuesday, investors will results from McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Restaurant Brands, Eli Lilly and PayPal before the open. Advanced Micro Devices, Pinterest, Super Micro and Starbucks are expected to release results after the close.
The April jobs report is also expected at the end of this week.
