Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 2, 2023.
Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Stock futures oscillated near the flat line Wednesday evening, with Wall Street preparing for the latest inflation data and the start of the fourth-quarter earnings season.
Futures tied to the S&P 500 added 0.02%, while Nasdaq 100 futures ticked up 0.08%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slid 12 points, or 0.03%.
In after-hours action, KB Home shares lost 2%. The homebuilder posted fourth-quarter results, issuing full-year revenue guidance of $6.4 billion to $6.8 billion, while analysts polled by FactSet called for $6.62 billion.
Stocks are coming off a winning session, with all three major indexes rising. The S&P 500 added 0.57%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.75%. The 30-stock Dow advanced 0.45%.
Investors are turning their attention toward December’s consumer price index report due Thursday morning. Economists polled by Dow Jones predict that the CPI rose 0.2% in December, or 3.2% on a year-over-year basis.
The inflation data will be a key catalyst for markets and could provide evidence as to whether the Federal Reserve’s tightening measures have done enough to tamp down prices. The results could also test the market’s expectations for six rate cuts in 2024, versus the central bank’s forecast for three cuts this year.
Elsewhere, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday approved rule changes, opening the door for bitcoin exchange-traded funds. The long-awaited move would expand investors’ access to the flagship crypto. Bitcoin ticked down after the news Wednesday evening, while ether climbed.
Investors are also eyeing the kickoff of the fourth-quarter earnings season, which will see banking behemoths Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase report results Friday.
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