-- U.S. stock index futures fell in evening deals on Wednesday, reversing course after a positive session on Wall Street as uncertainty persisted over the scope and scale of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cuts.
While Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that the bank will cut interest rates eventually in 2024, he noted that the Fed still needed more confidence that inflation was decreasing. This notion was furthered by separate comments from Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari, who said that he did not expect the Fed to cut rates more than twice this year.
Wall Street indexes had risen on Wednesday after Powell’s comments spurred some optimism over rate cuts this year. But futures carried over little of the positive momentum, and largely trimmed early gains after Kashkari’s comments.
S&P 500 Futures fell 0.2% to 5,103.00 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures fell 0.3% to 18,991.0 points by 19:54 ET (00:54 GMT). Dow Jones Futures fell 0.1% to 38,655.00 points.
Kashkari sees maybe one, two rate cuts in 2024
Speaking in an interview on WSJ Live, Kashkari said that he doesn’t expect more than two rate cuts in 2024, or even possibly one cut.
He cited recent resilience in the U.S. economy, which could underpin U.S. inflation expectations and afford the Fed more headroom to keep rates higher.
Kashkari’s comments echo those made by other Fed members over the past two weeks, who said that sticky inflation may undermine expectations of early rate cuts.
Higher for longer rates tend to weigh on the economy and diminish corporate earnings, while also denting the appeal of risk-driven assets such as equities.
Nonfarm payrolls data due Friday is expected to offer more cues on the U.S. economy.
Wall St remains in sight of record highs
Wednesday’s gains put Wall Street indexes back in sight of record highs, after they had fallen sharply earlier this week amid heavy profit-taking in the technology sector.
Tech remained the biggest driver of U.S. stock indexes, especially as investors remained upbeat over the prospect of artificial intelligence.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5% to finish at 5,104.76 points, while the NASDAQ Composite rose nearly 0.6% to 16,031.54 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% to 38,661.05 points.
Victoria’s Secret tumbles in aftermarket trade, OneSpan surges
Lingerie retailer Victoria\'s Secret & Co (NYSE:VSCO) slid 20% in aftermaket trade on weaker-than-expected guidance for 2024.
On the other hand, cybersecurity firm OneSpan Inc (NASDAQ:OSPN) surged nearly 30% on consensus-beating quarterly earnings.
New York Community Bancorp Inc (NYSE:NYCB) extended a recovery into aftermarket trade, rising 1.2% after the struggling regional raised over $1 billion in new capital.