US futures fall further amid rate jitters; PCE test approaches

Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures fell in evening deals on Thursday, extending losses as fears of high interest rates and slowing growth sparked a two-day rout on Wall Street, with focus now turning to key PCE data for more cues on inflation. 

Investors were also on edge over any potential political disruptions in the U.S., after a New York court found former President Donald Trump guilty in a hush money scandal. Trump is set to be sentenced on July 11, and faces potential prison time.

A mix of weak earnings and profit taking sparked steep losses in Wall Street over the past two sessions, while creeping doubts over the artificial intelligence industry also weighed on heavyweight technology stocks.

This came amid increasing doubts over any interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, especially as policymakers warned that sticky inflation will keep the central bank from loosening policy this year.

S&P 500 Futures fell 0.2% to 5,242.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures fell 0.3% to 18,59.25 points by 19:52 ET (23:2 GMT). Dow Jones Futures fell 0.2% to 38,174.0 points. 

PCE data awaited for more inflation, rate cues 

Investors were now focused squarely on upcoming PCE price index data, due on Friday.

The reading is the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, and is likely to factor into the central bank’s outlook on interest rates.

Friday’s reading is expected to show that inflation eased slightly in April. But the reading is also expected to remain well above the Fed’s 2% annual target range, giving the central bank little cause to begin trimming rates. 

Wall St spooked by rate jitters, weak GDP

Fears of high for longer interest rates saw Wall Street clock two days of steep losses this week.

Pressure also came from month-end selling, while the tail end of the first quarter earnings season bought a slew of disappointments. 

Additionally, gross domestic product data released on Thursday showed the U.S. economy grew less than initially expected in the first quarter, ramping up concerns over a stagflationary scenario- where growth remains slow, but inflation still remains high.

The S&P 500 fell 0.6% to 5,235.48 points, while the NASDAQ Composite fell 1.1% to 16,737.08 points on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.9% to 38,111.48 points. 

Dell slumps on weak earnings, Zscaler rises

Among major after-hours movers, Dell Technologies Inc (NYSE:DELL) slumped nearly 18% after its first quarter earnings disappointed, as demand from the AI industry factored only marginally into overall sales.

Apparel retailer Nordstrom Inc (NYSE:JWN) fell 7% on an underwhelming quarterly profit, while its peer GPS surged 20% on better-than-expected earnings and an improved outlook for the year. 

Zscaler Inc (NASDAQ:ZS) rose 13% after the cloud security firmed clocked strong quarterly earnings and also hiked its guidance.