Stock futures were calm on Sunday evening as investors equipped for every week of key corporate earnings and a possible rate of interest hike from the Federal Reserve.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 29 points, or about 0.1%. S&P 500 futures ticked down 0.1%, and Nasdaq 100 futures edged lower by 0.1%.
Wall Street is coming off a winning week because the stock market’s January rally continued. The Nasdaq Composite gained 4.3% for the week, while the S&P 500 and Dow added 2.5% and 1.8%, respectively.
There are several tests this week for this 2023 rally. A busy stretch of corporate earnings season includes reports from McDonald’s and General Motors on Tuesday followed by tech giants Apple, Meta Platforms, Amazon and Alphabet later within the week.
The Federal Open Market Committee meets on Tuesday and Wednesday, when the Fed is predicted to hike rates by one-quarter of a percentage point. Investors will likely be on the lookout for clues about how much higher the central bank will take rates within the fight against inflation.
“Inflation has shocked the Fed to the upside; they must be cautious to not inadvertently lower rates too early. Do not buy into this gobbledygook a couple of couple of rate cuts being priced into December. For now, the Fed is barely around to assist in the impossible event of a crash landing,” David Zervos, chief market strategist at Jefferies, said in a note to clients.
