Futures Pointing To Roughly Flat Open Ahead Of Powell Speech

Following the strong upward move seen in the previous session, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by just 7 points.

Traders may be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of Federal Reserve Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium at 10 am ET.

Powell’s speech is likely to be closely watched for clues about the outlook for interest rates ahead of the next Fed meeting in September.

CME Group’s FedWatch tool is currently indicating a 43.5 percent chance of a 50 basis point rate hike and a 56.5 percent chance of another 75 basis point rate hike.

Ahead of Powell’s remarks, the Commerce Department released its report on personal income and spending in the month of July, which includes a reading on inflation said to be preferred by the Fed.

The report showed the annual rate of core consumer price growth slowed to 4.6 percent in July from 4.8 percent in June. The annual rate of growth slowed by slightly more than expected but remains elevated.

The Commerce Department also said personal income edged up by 0.2 percent in July after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.7 percent in June.

Economists had expected personal income to rise by 0.6 percent, matching the advance originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report showed personal spending inched up by 0.1 percent in July after jumping by a downwardly revised 1.0 percent in June.

Personal spending was expected to increase by 0.4 percent compared to the 1.1 percent surge originally reported for the previous month.

Stocks closed on a strong note on Thursday, extending gains from the previous session, with several counters seeing sustained buying ahead of Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium. Investors also digested a slew of earnings updates and economic data.

The major averages all ended with impressive gains. The Dow surged 322.55 points or 1 percent to 33,291.78. The S&P 500 jumped 38.55 points or 1.4 percent to 4,199.12, while the Nasdaq surged 207.74 points or 1.7 percent to 12,639.27.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.6 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.0 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are turning in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.1 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are rising $0.63 to $93.15 a barrel after plunging $2.37 to $92.52 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after climbing $9.90 to $1,771.40 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are slipping $8.20 to $1,763.20 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 136.81 yen versus the 136.49 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0007 compared to yesterday’s $0.9975.

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