Stocks are poised for a robust opening on Wednesday, buoyed by a favorable response to a key report on consumer price inflation. The major index futures indicate a significantly higher start, with S&P 500 futures climbing by 0.8 percent.
This uptick follows a Labor Department report revealing that U.S. consumer prices remained unchanged in May, contrary to expectations. In April, the consumer price index had increased by 0.3 percent, but May's flat reading defied economists' forecasts of a modest 0.1 percent rise.
The stability in prices was largely due to a 3.5 percent plunge in gasoline prices, which counterbalanced the ongoing rise in shelter costs. When excluding food and energy, core consumer prices grew by 0.2 percent in May, slightly below April's 0.3 percent increase and the anticipated 0.3 percent climb.
Additionally, the annual rate of consumer price growth eased to 3.3 percent in May from 3.4 percent in April, again surprising economists who had predicted no change. The annual pace of core consumer price growth also slowed, down to 3.4 percent from 3.6 percent, against an expected reduction to 3.5 percent.
These lower-than-expected annual growth figures are likely to spark renewed optimism regarding the outlook for interest rates ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement this afternoon. While it's widely anticipated that the Fed will maintain current interest rates, traders will be keenly observing the accompanying statement and the latest economic and interest rate projections from Fed officials.
On Tuesday, U.S. stock indexes experienced early losses but displayed mixed results by the session's end. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 recovered to achieve new record closing highs, while the Dow, despite rebounding from its lowest levels, remained in negative territory throughout the day.
Specifically, the Nasdaq rose by 151.07 points or 0.9 percent to 17,343.55, while the S&P 500 increased by 14.53 points or 0.3 percent to 5,375.32. Conversely, the Dow dropped by 120.62 points or 0.3 percent to 38,747.42.
Overseas, Asia-Pacific markets displayed mixed performance on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 Index falling by 0.7 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index gaining 0.3 percent.
In contrast, major European markets have surged. The German DAX Index has jumped by 1.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.1 percent, and the French CAC 40 Index has risen by 1.0 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures have spiked by $1.04 to $78.94 a barrel, following a previous rise of $0.16 to $77.90 a barrel on Tuesday. Gold prices are also on the rise, currently trading at $2,346.10 an ounce, up $19.50 from the previous session's close of $2,326.60, despite a minor dip of $0.40 on Tuesday.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 156.38 yen, down from 157.13 yen in Tuesday's New York session. Against the euro, the dollar is now at $1.0818, up from $1.0741 yesterday.
