Market: Stocks to open higher ahead of consumer prices data

US futures are pointing to a higher open today after ending mixed on Monday. Investors remain cautious ahead of the consumer price index data as it hints at the upcoming interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.

The S&P futures gained 0.13% to 2,787.75, Dow futures rose 0.12% to 25,238 and Nasdaq rose 0.06% to 7,143.75. Elsewhere, shares at Asian markets closed mixed on Tuesday, while European stocks are trading higher.

On the European economic front, data from Istat showed that Italy’s unemployment rate fell to 11% from 12% last year. INE data revealed that Spain’s consumer price inflation accelerated to 1.1% in February from 0.6% in January. Insee data showed that France’s payroll job creation grew 0.3% in the fourth quarter after rising 0.2% in the first quarter.

On the Asian economic front, data from the Bank of Japan revealed that Japan’s producer prices rose 2.5% on year in February after rising 2.7% in January. The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry data showed that Japan’s tertiary industry activity index slipped 0.6% on month in January after remaining flat in December. The National Australia Bank data revealed that business confidence in Australia fell to +9 in February from +11 in January.

On March 12, US ended mixed, with Nasdaq up 0.4% to 7,588.32. Dow fell 0.6% to 25,178.61, and S&P 500 tumbled 0.1% to 2,783.02. The initial surge in markets was driven by positive monthly jobs report from the Labor Department.

On Monday, President Donald Trump blocked Broadcom’s $117 billion proposed takeover bid of Qualcomm on national security grounds. Both the companies have been ordered to discard the deal immediately.

Meanwhile, key economic data that will be released today include the Labor Department’s consumer price index, Redbook store sales, and NFIB Small Business Optimism Index. The market analysts are looking for CPI consensus of 0.2%, compared to 0.5% in January.

On the corporate front, Broadcom stock rose 0.82%, while Qualcomm stock fell 3.74% in the premarket. General Electric stock declined 2.78% in premarket after JPMorgan lowered price target on the shares. DSW stock rose 1.94% in premarket after better-than-expected fourth quarter earnings. Stitch Fix stock tumbled 6.63% in premarket after its second quarter revenue missed street expectations. Shares of Dicks Sporting Goods fell 4.58% in premarket after its fourth quarter revenue missed consensus.

President Donald Trump blocked Broadcom’s $117 billion proposed takeover bid of Qualcomm on national security grounds.

On the earnings front, key companies reporting earnings today include Antares Pharma, TeleTech Holdings, Inter Parfums, PetIQ, Caleres, Team, Synalloy, and General Moly.

Crude oil futures is down 0.60% to $60.99. Gold is trading up 0.35% to $1,325.40, and silver is up 0.478% to $16.615. On the currency front, the US dollar is trading up 0.58% at 107.046 yen. Against the euro, the dollar is up 0.21% to $1.2358. Against the pound, the dollar is up 0.14% to $1.3924.