U.S. stock index futures are gaining Tuesday after inflation data continued to show a cooling trend in February. The numbers could ease Wall Street worries over steeper interest rate hikes while the banking sector finds its footing.
How are stock-index futures trading
- S&P 500 futures ES00, +1.22% rose 31 points, or 0.8%, to 3919
- Dow Jones Industrial Average futures YM00, +0.95% added 206 points, or 0.6%, to 32261
- Nasdaq 100 futures NQ00, +1.14% climbed 85 points, or 0.7%, to 12140
On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.28% fell 91 points, or 0.28%, to 31819, the S&P 500 SPX, -0.15% declined 6 points, or 0.15%, to 3856, and the Nasdaq Composite COMP, +0.45% gained 50 points, or 0.45%, to 11189.
What’s driving markets
February’s Consumer Price Index showed the cost of living rising 0.4% month to month and 6% year over year. The 6% print is down from 6.4% a month earlier. Stripping out food and energy prices, the core CPI number was up 0.4% from January and 5.5% year over year, ticking down from the 5.6% print in January.
The data matched analyst estimates with the exception of the CPI’s overall rise month to month coming in slightly hotter than the expected 0.4% rise.
The 6% headline number is the lowest since September 2021.
The inflation data comes while the dust is settling in the banking sector. The failure of Silicon Valley Bank SIVB, -60.41% and Signature Bank SBNY, -22.87% days ago has rattled the global financial sector. It was the turn of Japanese banks to flounder on Tuesday, with the TOPIX Banks index off more than 7%.
Stocks of America’s regional banks, which have been under pressure, showed bounce in early premarket trading Tuesday. First Republic Bank was leading the charge, up more than 40% in the premarket.
The broader market, though volatile of late — the CBOE VIX index VIX, -9.09% touched 30 on Monday — has not completely cracked.
The S&P 500 SPX, -0.15% remains within — though now towards the bottom — of the 3,800 to 4,200 range it has inhabited for four months or so, supported by hopes the banking angst will be ameliorated by a consequently less hawkish Federal Reserve.
But for the Fed to halt its interest rate hikes — now priced at a 44.6% probability, according to futures markets — it may need the cover of declining inflationary pressures.
That adds extra weight to the February CPI numbers that already are subject to intense scrutiny.
“There is now a massive lack of consensus in the market regarding what the Fed should do, and what the Fed will do,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
“Some think that if today’s inflation data is not sufficiently soft, the Fed should continue hiking by 50bp. Some others think that the Fed should simply hike by another 25bp this month and signal a pause starting from the next meeting – which would be the smoothest solution of all for the market,” she added.
Mark Newton, head of technical strategy at Fundstrat, noted that there was welcome strength in big technology and healthcare stocks on Monday as financials struggled, but that with U.S. retail sales data also due Wednesday, investors should brace for volatility.
“While it might be premature to think healthcare strength can completely offset financials weakness, it’s certainly helpful to see that technology, discretionary, industrials were all stronger relative to S&P 5000,” Newton wrote in a note published late Monday.
“SPX daily chart shows prices having pulled back to just above last December lows. There has been a definite break of the 200-day moving average along with a break of its uptrend. Thus, a rebound is imperative this week, and ideally on Tuesday/Wednesday.”
“The ability of recovering SPX 3928 would be a great sign, which signifies the initial upside resistance. Downside support lies near last December 2022 lows, which lies from 3764-3800. Only if December 2022 lows are violated would the 4-6 week forecast turn more negative,” Newton concluded.