After a selloff on Wall Street in the prior session, U.S. stock index futures inched higher on Wednesday as investors awaited more economic data ahead of the outcome of a Federal Reserve policy meeting later in the day.
On Tuesday, major U.S. stock indexes fell by more than 1 percent as regional bank shares fell and investors pondered how much longer the Fed may need to continue hiking interest rates.
Regional lenders such as PacWest Bancorp and Western Alliance Bank saw their shares decline by 10.5% and 6.0%, respectively, in premarket trading on Wednesday.
Despite the fact that a 25-basis-point increase in interest rates is widely anticipated from the Federal Reserve, investors will be watching for indications that additional rate rises may be forthcoming if inflation remains elevated.
Since March 2022, the Federal Reserve has raised its benchmark rates nine times by a total of 475 basis points, to a range of 4.75 to 5.00 percent.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference will be analyzed for hints of rate cuts later this year in light of concerns about the banking sector, inflation above the U.S. central bank’s 2% target and a labor market that remains robust.
Prior to the Fed’s policy decision, investors will monitor the ADP National Employment report for the United States, which is scheduled to be released before the opening bell. The data is anticipated to indicate that private payrolls increased by 148,000 positions in April, surpassing the 145,000 positions added in March.
After markets open, the Institute for Supply Management will also release its non-manufacturing PMI. It presumably increased from 51.2 in March to 51.8 in April. April’s final Composite and Services PMI reading from S&P Global is also forthcoming.
senior Republicans in the U.S. Senate urged President Joe Biden on Tuesday to accept their party’s debt-ceiling proposal or make a counter-offer, while a senior Democrat said the Senate may attempt to pass a “clean” debt-ceiling increase next week.
On Wednesday, CVS Health Corp, Phillips 66, Exelon Corp, and Yum Brands Inc will disclose their quarterly results.
IBES data from Refinitiv indicates that analysts anticipate quarterly earnings for S&P 500 companies to decline 1.4% from the prior year, compared to a 5.1% decline anticipated at the beginning of April.
Dow e-minis were up 17 points, or 0.05%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 3 points, or 0.07%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 15 points, or 0.11%, as of 5:41 a.m. ET.
Ford Motor Co slipped 0.8% as the automaker said it was cutting prices on its Mustang Mach-E electric vehicle and reopening orders.
Advanced Micro Devices slumped 5.7% after the chipmaker forecast quarterly sales below estimates due to a weak PC market, pushing rival Intel Corp up 2.1%.