Stocks are anticipated to experience a decline in early trading on Wednesday, continuing the downturn witnessed in the previous session. Current major index futures are indicating a potential market opening on the lower side, with the S&P 500 futures dropping by 0.3 percent.
Market concerns regarding the future of interest rates may persist, with the upcoming Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement expected this afternoon. Although it is widely expected that the Fed will hold the rates steady, traders will keenly focus on potential changes to the wording of the statement issued post the meeting, as well as Fed Chair Jerome Powell's press conference.
John Lynch, Chief Investment Officer for Comerica Wealth Management, mentioned that the previous day's late market slump signifies a transition from hopes of monetary adjustment to recognizing that higher rates will continue. Lynch further suggested that significant revelations of the day might come from the Treasury's refunding announcement rather than the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). He pointed out that any increase in liquidity could potentially stabilize economic demand and risk assets.
Conversely, shares of Amazon (AMZN) might initially rise after the e-commerce giant reported better than expected results for the first quarter.
ADP’s report revealed that private sector employment in April surpassed expectations, with the private sector adding 192,000 jobs, an increase from the previously revised 208,000 jobs in March. This growth exceeded economists' expectations of an addition of 175,000 jobs, which was updated from the originally reported addition of 184,000 jobs from the previous month.
However, Japan and Australia’s stock markets experienced a decline on Wednesday, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dipping by 0.3 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index falling by 1.2 percent.
In commodities trading, the price of crude oil fell by $1.38 to $80.55 a barrel. Gold experienced an increase of $3.70 in its trading price, now standing at $2,306.60 per ounce.
The U.S. dollar’s exchange rate now stands at 157.78 yen, regarding the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0681.
