Dow futures fall 55 pts; big bank results, retail sales in focus

By Peter Nurse    

Investing.com -- U.S. stocks are seen opening marginally lower Friday, consolidating after the previous session’s gains as investors await earnings from a number of major banks, marking the start of the new results season. 

At 06:30 ET (10:30 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was down 55 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 Futures traded 6 points, or 0.2%, lower and Nasdaq 100 Futures dropped 45 points, or 0.4%.

The main indices closed firmly higher Wednesday, boosted by more economic data that pointed to cooling inflation, increasing the chances that the Federal Reserve ends its rate-hiking cycle soon, probably with a final increase in May.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average closed over 380 points, or 1.1% higher, the broad-based S&P 500 ended up 1.3% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 2%.

Helping that positive tone was the soft reading on March U.S. producer prices, and there’s more economic data to study Friday, with the March retail sales report the highlight.

Forecasts favor a dip of 0.4%, but risks seem tilted to the downside given the possibility of a sharp pullback in spending given the banking instability during that month.

That said, the major focus Friday is likely to be the start of the new quarterly earnings seasons, with results due from the major banks Citigroup (NYSE:C), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM).

Investors will be looking to see what the banking officials say about the economic outlook, consumer credit quality and business activity, especially after Fed policymakers mentioned concerns about the sector when forecasting the possibility of a “mild recession” later this year.

In other corporate news, Boeing (NYSE:BA) stock is sharply lower premarket after the aircraft manufacturer halted deliveries of some 737 MAXs as it grapples with a new supplier quality problem.

Lucid Group (NASDAQ:LCID) stock also slumped premarket after the luxury electric car maker reported first-quarter production and delivery figures that were lower than the preceding three months.

Oil prices edged higher Friday, with the latest monthly report from the International Energy Agency stating that the output cuts announced by OPEC+ producers are set to exacerbate the supply deficit this year.

The Paris-based organization estimated global oil supply to fall by 400,000 barrels per day by the end of the year, while world oil demand is set to grow by 2 million barrels per day in 2023 to a record 101.9 million barrels, driven in most part by stronger Chinese consumption.

By 06:30 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 0.4% higher at $82.45 a barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.3% to $86.38.

Additionally, gold futures traded 0.1% lower at $2054.20/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.2% higher at 1.1061.