Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
NYSE
U.S. stock futures soared on Wednesday night, with traders keeping an eye out for interest rates and persistent turmoil in Washington.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures traded 46 points above, or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures gained 0.2% and Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 0.1%.
Earlier in the day, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite gained 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively. The Dow Jones, however, closed the apartment.
Wednesday’s gains for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq came after Intel climbed nearly 7% to lead technology stocks. They also watched U.S. interest rates drop from their highest levels since March 2020.
The yield of the 10-year reference note fell to 1.09% a day, after reaching an increase of 1.18%. This decline in rates occurred when two top Federal Reserve officials observed that monetary policy will remain easy in the near future.
The Fed vice president said the central bank will not raise rates until inflation reaches 2%. In the meantime, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard noted that there will come a time when policy will have to be stricter, “but man, I would not like to put a specific date on things at this point.”
Rates have been rising this year amid the prospect of further US fiscal stimulus after Democrats secured majorities in the House and Senate. Inflation expectations have also increased recently.
“We think inflation in the United States will be higher than most expected in the next two years,” wrote Adam Hoyes, assistant economist at Capital Economics. “At the same time, we think investors are overestimating how quickly the Fed will allow monetary conditions to narrow. The Fed’s new flexible framework of average inflation targets suggests that it will allow inflation to rise above 2% for a period in the coming years. “
Investors are also eyeing Washington as members of the House voted to impeach President Donald Trump for the second time – making him the first US president to suffer two impeachments – while a bipartisan majority accused him of inciting a riot on Capitol Hill. from the USA last week.
To be sure, the market has ignored the growing political and civil unrest.
“Normally, we would expect risky assets to recede during an event like this, but the market seems more focused on the next administration at this point,” said Brian Price, head of investment management at the Commonwealth Financial Network. “
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