Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) saw a steady start as stock futures remained near flat Sunday night, following a successful week for Wall Street. With investors now setting their sights on the upcoming Federal Reserve meeting, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 35 points, marking a 0.2% increase. Both S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures also experienced slight rises of 0.1%.
This positive movement comes on the heels of a second consecutive week of gains for all three major indices. The Dow and Nasdaq Composite finished the week with respective increases of 0.5% and 0.9%. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 advanced approximately 0.3%, bringing it within striking distance of its all-time intraday high, being around 0.7% off this benchmark. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq celebrated four-day winning streaks by Friday, while the Dow recorded positive numbers in three of the last four trading sessions.
The surge in stock prices was partly attributed to Friday’s delayed release of September’s core personal consumption expenditures price index, which came in softer than economists had predicted. This release is significant as it serves as one of the last major economic announcements preceding the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting scheduled for this week.
Market optimism has been on the rise, with traders increasingly anticipating a potential reduction in interest rates at the final FOMC meeting of the year. According to CME’s FedWatch tool, fed funds futures now indicate an approximately 88% probability of a decrease, a notable increase from just under 67% a month ago.
Commenting on the evolving market sentiment, Eric Freedman, Northern Trust’s chief investment officer for wealth management, noted that while the focus remains on the possibility of an interest rate cut or a hold, investors are also keenly interested in the outlook of voting members and the future leadership of the Fed.
Looking ahead, there is no significant economic data scheduled for release on Monday. However, the New York Fed is set to publish its survey of consumer expectations in the morning. Additionally, investors are gearing up for earnings reports from notable companies like Lululemon, Costco, Broadcom, Oracle, and Adobe throughout the week, signaling a busy period ahead for the markets.
