Wall St futures edge higher ahead of inflation data

[October 13, 2022]  By Bansari Mayur Kamdar and Ankika Biswas

(Reuters) -Wall Street futures ticked higher on Thursday, ahead of a closely watched U.S. inflation report that could offer clues on how successful the Federal Reserve has been in its battle against decades-high inflation.

The Labor Department's consumer prices index (CPI) report, due at 8:30 am ET, will likely show headline CPI to have gained at an annual pace of 8.1% in September, lower than an 8.3% increase in August, according to a Reuters poll.

However, the core CPI, which eliminates volatile food and fuel prices, is estimated to have risen 6.5% last month, up from a 6.3% rise in August.

"CPI will tell them (Fed policymakers) how effective they are in trying to bring and restore price stability back to the U.S. economy with their tightening cycle," said Jeffrey Schulze, director and investment strategist at ClearBridge Investments.

The report follows data on Wednesday that showed U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in September amid strong gains in the costs of services and goods, suggesting inflation could remain uncomfortably high for a while.

The latest batch of economic data could cement the case for a fourth big rate hike by the central bank, with money markets pricing in a 92% chance of a 75 basis point increase at the Fed's November rate-setting meeting. [FEDWATCH]

The tech-heavy Nasdaq and the S&P 500 fell for six straight sessions on growing fears that aggressive tightening by the Fed could tip the world's largest economy into a recession.

Minutes from last month's Fed meeting showed policymakers agreed they needed to maintain a more restrictive policy stance, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell vowed that they would "keep at it until we're confident the job is done."

Raindrops hang on a sign for Wall Street outside the New York Stock Exchange in Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., October 26, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Segar

At 6:43 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 152 points, or 0.52%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 20.25 points, or 0.56%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 35.25 points, or 0.33%.

Third-quarter earnings reports will also help determine the impact of higher prices on company profits, with analysts now expecting profit for S&P 500 companies to have risen just 4.1% from a year ago, much lower than an 11.1% increase expected at the start of July, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Shares of BlackRock Inc dipped 0.2% in premarket trading, after the world's largest asset manager posted a 16% drop in third-quarter profit as volatile global markets pressured fee income.

Megacap growth and technology stocks such as Meta Platforms Inc, Alphabet Inc, Nvidia Corp and Tesla Inc were trading flat, while keeping track of a small move higher in the 10-year benchmark Treasury yield. [US/]

Also on tap is a report that is expected to show 225,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, up from 219,000 in the week prior to that.

(Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar, Ankika Biswas and Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Anil D'Silva)

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