U.S. stock futures fell into the red on Tuesday as investors braced for an upcoming consumer inflation report seen as crucial to the size of the first U.S. interest rate cut in years.
Futures on the S&P 500 futures (ES=F) and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) remained below the flatline. Contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) fell about 0.1%.
Stocks are expected to begin to reverse Monday’s sharp rally, with leading indicators rising more than 1% as investors hunted for post-recession bargains. Volatility has dogged markets as investors waver between hopes for a solid 0.5% rate cut from the Federal Reserve and worries about the risks of a recession.
The countdown is on for August consumer inflation figures on Wednesday, which could be decisive for expectations of rate cuts after the monthly jobs report left the market in limbo.
Read more: Fed Forecasts for 2024: What Experts Say About the Possibility of a Rate Cut
With the Fed’s policy decision just days away, investors are still unsure whether a 25 or 50 basis point cut is in the offing. Thursday’s CPI update and wholesale inflation reading are the last two inflation inputs before policymakers meet on Sept. 17.
Meanwhile, shares of Apple ( AAPL ) were slightly lower after the company lost an EU court battle over a $14 billion tax bill, a day after the iPhone 16 launch disappointed on the AI ​​front. Elsewhere in the tech world, Oracle ( ORCL ) shares rose more than 8% in premarket after earnings topped estimates on the back of demand for cloud services.
