US stock futures inch higher, CPI awaited for more rate cues

Investing.com-- U.S. stock index futures rose slightly in evening deals on Tuesday, tracking a mildly positive session on Wall Street as investors hunkered down before key inflation data that is expected to factor into the outlook for interest rates. 

More commentary from the Federal Reserve, as well as the beginning of the first-quarter earnings season also kept markets on tenterhooks after Wall Street clocked a weak start to April and largely tread water in recent sessions. 

S&P 500 Futures rose 0.05% to 5,262.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures rose 0.07% to 18,373.50 points by 19:12 ET (23:12 GMT). Dow Jones Futures rose 0.06% to 39,218.0 points. 

CPI data set to offer more cues on interest rate cuts 

Markets were now focused squarely on consumer price index data for March, which was due on Wednesday. The reading is expected to show the year-on-year inflation picked up slightly to 3.4%, remaining well above the Fed’s annual 2% target.

Such a scenario gives the Fed little impetus to begin cutting interest rates early, given that recent data also showed the U.S. labor market running hot. 

Several Fed officials warned in recent weeks that sticky inflation gives the central bank more headroom to keep rates higher for longer.

Wall St treads water with Fed minutes, earnings also on tap

Wall Street indexes traded rangebound in recent sessions, hit by profit-taking in heavyweight technology stocks as risk appetite waned in the face of higher-for-longer interest rates. 

The S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 5,209.91 points on Tuesday, while the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.3% to 16,306.64 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended flat at 38,883.67 points. 

Market darling NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) slid 2% during the session and hit a one-month low in after-hours trading, as cooling hype over artificial intelligence saw traders lock-in profits after a stellar run in the stock.

The minutes of the Fed’s March meeting are also due on Wednesday, and are expected to offer more insight into the bank’s plans to cut interest rates this year.

While the Fed had reiterated its outlook for a 75 basis point cut during the meeting, several Fed officials questioned this outlook, especially in the face of sticky inflation. 

Anticipation of the first-quarter earnings season also kept sentiment on edge, as investors waited to see whether Wall Street could justify a massive run-up in valuation over the first quarter. 

Wall Street banks JPMorgan Chase&Co (NYSE:JPM), Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) and Wells Fargo &Company (NYSE:WFC) will kick off the earnings season on Friday. Quarterly reports from Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE:DAL) and BlackRock Inc (NYSE:BLK) are also due this week.