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Wall Street ended the Thanksgiving week on a positive note, with
the major indexes notching up their fourth consecutive week of
gains on growing optimism that the Federal Reserve was likely
done hiking interest rates.
At 5:39 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 48 points, or 0.14%, S&P
500 e-minis were down 7 points, or 0.15%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis
were down 23.75 points, or 0.15%.
Data showed profit at China's industrial firms grew at a slower
pace, indicating the need for more policy support measures to
help shore up growth in the world's second-largest economy.
In the US, the investors will look out for the "Beige Book", the
Fed's compendium of reports about the economy, on Wednesday. The
personal consumption expenditure index data for October - the
Fed's preferred inflation gauge - is slated to be released on
Thursday.
While traders have priced in the chances of a pause in rate
hikes in December, they see a nearly 50% chance of at least one
25-basis point rate cut in May 2024, according to the CME
FedWatch Tool.
"Usually after Thanksgiving, you tend to get some profit taking
because the volumes are low," said Axel Rudolph, senior market
analyst at IG Group.
"But, until the end of the year we usually have, from a
seasonality point of view, quite a bullish bias in equity
market."
A rebound in equities in November has brought the S&P 500 within
1% from its highest intra-day level this year.
Retailers were also on the radar after Black Friday and as Cyber
Monday kicks off with shoppers expected to purchase up to a
record $12 billion.
Shares of Amazon.com and Walmart edged up 0.3% and 0.1%,
respectively, before the bell.
Among other stocks, Crown Castle International added 3.8% as
Elliott Investment Management, a large shareholder in the
wireless tower owner planned to push for changes to boost its
share price, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
GE HealthCare lost 2.7% after UBS downgraded the medical devices
maker to "sell" from "neutral.
(Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru;
Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
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