US stock futures struggled for a foothold on Monday, ahead of a week highlighted by inflation data that will set the stage for the Federal Reserve’s final interest-rate decision of the year.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) wavered along the flat line, coming off a losing week for the blue-chip index. S&P 500 futures (ES=F) also wobbled, while contracts on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) slipped 0.2%, in the wake of fresh records for both.
The next test for Wall Street stocks comes in a consumer inflation report, seen as influential to the Federal Reserve’s looming policy decision. The November Consumer Price Index on Wednesday will stress-test widespread expectation for a quarter-point rate cut on Dec. 18, after the latest monthly jobs report failed to shake that conviction.
Meanwhile, Nvidia (NVDA) shares slipped after China opened a probe into the chipmaker for potential breaches of its anti-monopoly laws. The company’s lead in AI chips has put it in the middle of the US-China wrangles over tech.
But US-listed Chinese stocks popped after Beijing made its first move toward loosening monetary policy in over a decade, signaling more and bolder stimulus is on the way. Shares in Alibaba (BABA, 9988.HK) and XPeng (XPEV, 9868.HK) were among the premarket gainers, after stocks in Hong Kong jumped.
Markets appear to be taking the abrupt fall of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria in stride, with haven asset gold (GC=F) rising modestly. Optimism for China’s economy is seen as eclipsing any worries around geopolitical stresses in Syria, South Korea, France, and elsewhere.
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