NEW YORK, April 10 — US stock index futures rose slightly today after a bout of selling on trade and growth concerns, as investors awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting and the start of the corporate earnings season.
The S&P 500 ended its eight-day rally on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on US$11 billion (RM45.2 billion) of European goods, opening a new front in his global trade war.
The International Monetary Fund’s global growth forecast cut also added to the gloom, with investors now banking on better-than-feared first-quarter earnings reports and patience on interest rate hikes from the Fed.
The US central bank will release minutes from its March meeting at 2pm ET (1800 GMT), giving more insight into the Fed’s thinking behind its move to suspend rate hikes this year.
The European Central Bank is also due to announce its policy decision before the opening bell today, with more proposals of supportive policy likely to boost markets.
Data on US consumer prices for March is due at 8.30am ET and the numbers are expected to have risen 0.3 per cent in March after a 0.2 per cent increase in February.
Earnings season begins in earnest on Friday when JPMorgan Chase & Co and Wells Fargo & Co report quarterly results.
In the wake of the Fed’s cautious shift and the subsequent drop in 10-year Treasury yields, S&P 500 banks are seen posting earnings growth of 1.9 per cent, down from 8.2 per cent forecast six months ago, according to Refinitiv data.
However, a lowered bar this quarter could prove a catalyst for sustaining a rally that began a decade ago, analysts say. The S&P 500 has risen 14.8 per cent so far this year and is now just 1.8 per cent below its record closing high hit on September 20.
At 7.12am ET, Dow e-minis were up 70 points, or 0.27 per cent. S&P 500 e-minis were up eight points, or 0.28 per cent and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 18 points, or 0.24 per cent.
Levi Strauss & Co jumped 7.2 per cent in premarket trading. The jeans maker posted a 7 per cent rise in quarterly revenue after returning to public markets last month, driven by its strategy to invest in its retail stores and online business.
Delta Air Lines Co rose 2.8 per cent after the carrier forecast second-quarter profit above Wall Street expectations.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc climbed 1.5 per cent after Cowen and Co raised its price target on the chipmaker’s shares and said it was in a better competitive position than Intel Corp. — Reuters
