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The
S&P 500 closed higher for a fourth straight session on Tuesday,
its best winning run since March, while the blue-chip Dow scored
a fifth session of gain in its longest positive run since
December 2023.
Markets have mostly traded higher so far in May, as investors
took comfort from an upbeat earnings season as well as a recent
softer-than-expected labor market report, which tempered
concerns about the Fed keeping interest rates higher for longer.
Investors will focus on comments on Fed Vice Chair Philip
Jefferson, Boston Fed President Susan Collins and Governor Lisa
Cook during the day for fresh clues on the central bank's
monetary easing plans.
With the earnings season at its tail-end and only a few economic
reports expected this week, markets are now awaiting next week's
consumer prices reading to gauge if inflation is cooling.
Traders are pricing in a 49% chance of the U.S. central bank
cutting interest rates by 25 basis points in September,
according to the CME Group's Fedwatch tool, up from 43% a week
ago. They are also pricing in a 36% chance of another rate cut
in December.
By 5:56 a.m. ET, S&P 500 e-minis were up 0.25 points. Nasdaq 100
e-minis slipped 3.5 points, or 0.02%, and Dow e-minis were up 13
points, or 0.03%
Overall, the first-quarter earnings have been much better than
expected. Of the 424 S&P 500 companies that reported through
Tuesday, nearly 78% topped analysts' estimates, according to
LSEG data. In a typical quarter, 67% beat estimates.
Uber, Fox Corp and Philip Morris, among other U.S. companies,
will report results before the opening bell.
Reddit climbed nearly 14% premarket after the social media
platform said it could post an adjusted profit in the second
quarter, thanks to its booming advertising business and
content-licensing deals with AI companies.
Lyft climbed 5.4% after the ride-hailing company projected
higher-than-expected gross bookings and a core profit for the
current quarter. Rival Uber also gained 3.3%.
Rivian slid 4.3% after the electric-pickup truck maker stuck to
a 2024 production forecast that was well below Wall Street
targets and reported a wider-than-expected first-quarter loss as
it ended a weeks-long manufacturing halt.
(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini
Ganguli)
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