Opening Comment — Friday, April 26, 2024
DJIA: 38,085.80, down 375.12
S&P 500: 5,048.42, down 23.21
NASDAQ: 15,611.76, down 100.99
Stocks higher ahead of key economic data
Stock futures are higher on Friday, as investors await the readings for December’s Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) deflator, personal income, and personal spending data releases. The Dow is rising 0.1% and the S&P 500 is up 0.8% . The Nasdaq 100 is advancing 1.1% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Thursday, as investors digested the initial reading for the first quarter’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which saw GDP increase less-than-expected while the quarterly core PCE Price Index rose above expectations and the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) target. The Dow was down 1.0%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.6%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.5% with six of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Communication Services sector declined the most, falling 4.0%.
On the data front today, personal income is projected to rise 0.5% in March, versus the prior month’s increase of 0.3%, while March’s personal spending is expected to rise 0.6% versus the prior month’s 0.8%. March’s PCE deflator is anticipated to increase 0.3% month-over-month (MoM), similar to the prior month’s change, and increase 2.6% year-over-year (YoY), versus the previous month’s advance of 2.5%. Meanwhile, March’s PCE core deflator, which excludes the more volatile energy and food components, is projected to rise 0.3% MoM, similar to the prior month’s change, and rise 2.7% YoY versus the prior month’s increase of 2.8%.
Across the pond, European stocks are higher in mid-day trading as investors focus on U.S. tech earnings and other corporate releases. France’s consumer confidence for April unexpectedly declined.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly higher as the Tokyo Consumer Price Index showed significantly slower price increases than expected in April. Australia’s first-quarter Producer Price Index showed an acceleration in price gains on a yearly basis.
In FOREX trading, the dollar is slightly higher as the Japanese Yen declined against the dollar after the Bank of Japan left its benchmark interest rate unchanged.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 0.5% higher at $83.97/barrel after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s upbeat comments on the economy.
In the metals complex, gold is 0.2% higher at $2329.80/ounce ahead of a key U.S. inflation report.