Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on May 17, 2024.
Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
Stock futures hovered near the flat line Tuesday night as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision and consumer inflation data for May.
Futures linked to Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 9 points, or 0.02%. S&P 500 Futures increased by 0.04%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures added 0.1%.
In extended trade, Oracle jumped 9% as traders focused on the software maker's newly announced announcement. cloud agreements with Google and OpenAIoverlooking the errors in the company's last quarter.
During trading on Tuesday, investor rotation toward Apple helped lift the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite to new closing highs. The iPhone maker announced its push toward artificial intelligence at its developer conference this week, fueling a rally in the stock. The Dow Jones was the outlier of the three major averages, losing 0.31%.
Investors await Wednesday's conclusion of the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting, which will include a decision on rate policy and a subsequent news conference with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
While market prices indicate that the Federal Reserve will maintain its benchmark overnight borrowing rate in a range between 5.25% and 5.5%, the market We will be attentive to updates from central bankers. to its Summary of Economic Projections, which could clarify the policy path. Investors are increasingly concerned that the recent strong jobs report and sticky inflation will support a longer-term higher interest rate environment.
"The market will focus on any mention (within the Fed statement, the dot plot, or Chairman Powell's comments) of concerns about the labor market, given Powell's comments that signs of deterioration could lead to a reducing rates," said Quincy Krosby. chief global strategist at LPL Financial.
Also due Wednesday morning will be the May consumer price index, a broad measure of the costs of goods and services. The report is predicted to show only a 0.1% increase since April and a 3.4% increase year over year.
