Stocks Poised for Higher Open Despite Hot Core Inflation Data
U.S. equities point to gains Friday even as core consumer inflation runs hotter than Wall Street expected.
U.S. stock futures signaled a higher open Friday morning after a key inflation report showed consumer prices, stripped of volatile food and energy costs, came in above analyst expectations — a development that would typically unsettle markets but appeared to leave equity bulls undeterred.
Core inflation, which the Federal Reserve watches closely when calibrating interest rate decisions, running above forecasts raises questions about how much room policymakers have to ease monetary policy. Yet traders appeared willing to look past the hotter-than-expected reading, at least in early pre-market activity.
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The resilience in futures comes amid an ongoing tug-of-war between investors who believe inflation is largely under control and those who warn that sticky price pressures could keep the Fed on hold — or even prompt renewed hawkishness — longer than markets currently price in.
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