Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on January 15, 2025 in New York.
David Dee Delgado | Getty Images
U.S. stock futures were little changed late Wednesday after the S&P 500 posted its best day since November, led by a subdued inflation report and strong bank results. Traders also expect further profits for big banks.
Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures added 40 points, or 0.09%. S&P 500 Futures Contracts increased by 0.09%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures gained 0.07%.
Stock of 30 Dow jumped more than 700 points, or 1.65%, while the S&P500 increased by 1.83%. THE Nasdaq Composite outperformed, increasing by 2.45%. Small cap Russell 2000 gained around 2%. A moderate improvement in core consumer price index inflation in December and strong earnings from big banks spurred renewed risk appetite.
THE 10-year US Treasury yield fell sharply from the 14-month high reached earlier in the week. It last hovered around 4.65%.
Technology stocks have appeared in regular trading, as have the more speculative segments of the market. Tesla And Nvidia increased by 8% and 3%, respectively. Bitcoin briefly topped $100,000 during the session.
“The bond market was starting to price in the risk of further hikes, and so you get this slightly lower than expected inflation data, which allows you to have this big relief bounce, mainly in the rate-sensitive parts of the market of interest.” Cameron Dawson, chief investment officer of NewEdge Wealth, said Wednesday on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.”
“That doesn’t mean we’re necessarily out of the woods for things like small caps, given the volatility they’re experiencing,” she added. “But the sigh of relief is welcome.”
Wall Street will get more information on the state of the economy on Thursday. The December retail sales report is expected to show an increase of 0.5%, up from 0.7% the previous month, according to a Dow Jones consensus estimate.
Morgan Stanley And Bank of America are expected to release their results on Thursday, closing out the big banks’ reports.
Separately, Scott Bessent, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary, will sit before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee on Thursday morning, a hearing that investors will analyze for clues on tariffs and other policies of the new administration.
