On Wednesday, tech companies' shares added gains on the back of declining government bond yields. Us Treasuries dropped following disappointing inflation data. The inflation rate remains high and it is likely to keep growing. This is why companies may raise prices in order to maintain the same net profit growth.
Traders also assessed the Fed's last meeting minutes. At the September meeting, Fed officials generally agreed that they would start reducing the quantitative easing program in mid-November or mid-December. They noted that inflation remained high longer than expected. Yet, they are sure that inflation is transitory. Fed members discussed possible ways of gradual taper. The regulator may start cutting $10 billion a month in Treasuries and $5 billion a month in mortgage-backed securities.
The S&P 500 index continued to grow. As of 23:05 MSK, it climbed by 0.15%. The ten-year Treasury yield was trading below 1.6%. The two-year Treasury yield, which is more sensitive to monetary policy changes, managed to advance. Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL.N) warned of a pre-tax loss for the fourth quarter due to a sharp rise in fuel prices.
Prices paid by US consumers exceeded the September forecast, underscoring the persistence of inflationary pressures in the economy. Supply disruptions, shortage of materials, high commodity prices, and rising wages have led to an increase in costs for manufacturers. Many companies raise prices for consumers in order to maintain revenue. This is why inflation remains stable.
"Wednesday's still elevated Consumer Price Index marks about 6-months worth of hot inflation data, suggesting that inflation is not as transitory as many investors previously expected. It coincides with the start of third-quarter earnings season, and investors will be looking to see if inflation is starting to negatively affect corporate profits in a significant way," Nancy Davis, the founder of Quadratic Capital Management in Greenwich, Connecticut.
This week, the macroeconomic calendar contains the following important events:
- Bank of America Corp., Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup Inc. are going to unveil their earnings reports on Thursday;
- reports on the number of US initial jobless claims and the producer price index are due on Thursday;
- Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is going to publish its earnings report on Friday,
- reports on the US business inventories, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index, and retail sales are on tap on Friday.
